{"id":15463,"date":"2026-01-02T12:27:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T12:27:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/?p=15463"},"modified":"2026-01-02T12:27:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T12:27:14","slug":"budget-auto-enrolment-pensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/budget-auto-enrolment-pensions\/","title":{"rendered":"How to budget for My Future Fund: What Irish employers need to consider"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/category\/money-matters\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Money Matters<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tHow to budget for My Future Fund: What Irish employers need to consider\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-02T12:27:13+00:00\">2 January, 2026<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"How to budget for My Future Fund: What Irish employers need to consider\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/budget-auto-enrolment-pensions\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/author\/roisinkilleen\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"40\" height=\"40\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2019\/10\/Roisin-Killeen.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" alt=\"Roisin Killeen\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">R\u00f3is\u00edn Killeen<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>My Future Fund pension auto-enrolment is now in effect and is significant for employers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Under the scheme, employees who don&#8217;t have a private pension, earn more than \u20ac20,000 per year, and are aged between 23 and 60, will automatically be enrolled into the pension scheme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It also includes stipulations such as an employee will be entitled to opt out or suspend contributions after six months. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the employee will be re-enrolled again after two years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once re-enrolled, the employee can opt out again after another 6 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It was introduced on <strong>1 January 2026<\/strong> and, depending on the circumstances, it can lead to a significant increase in payroll costs for your company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your long-term plans may need adjusting, so it\u2019s important to budget and plan for it now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You may also need to consider additional initial costs, such as any money spent on communicating and consulting with employees about the scheme. Factor in any experts, including pension providers, depending on the complexity of the pension needs for your company. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These set-up costs should also be in your budgeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the long-term impact on your budget will be even more important and this too will need to be considered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This article outlines the budgeting implications of pension-auto enrolment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Here&#8217;s what we&#8217;ll cover:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><div class=\"wp-block-yoast-seo-table-of-contents yoast-table-of-contents\"><ul><li><a href=\"#h-direct-costs-of-auto-enrolment\" data-level=\"2\">Direct costs of auto-enrolment<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#h-calculate-your-direct-payroll-costs\" data-level=\"3\">Calculate your direct payroll costs<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-consider-what-if-scenarios\" data-level=\"3\">Consider &#8220;what-if&#8221; scenarios<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-remember-that-contribution-rates-will-rise-on-a-phased-basis\" data-level=\"3\">Remember that contribution rates will rise on a phased basis<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-review-your-benefits-packages\" data-level=\"3\">Review your benefits packages<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-create-a-buffer-for-potential-contribution-rate-increases-later-down-the-line\" data-level=\"3\">Create a buffer for potential contribution rate increases later down the line<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-initial-setting-up-costs\" data-level=\"2\">Initial setting up costs<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-ongoing-administration-costs\" data-level=\"2\">Ongoing administration costs<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-which-companies-will-be-most-impacted\" data-level=\"2\">Which companies will be most impacted?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-long-term-implications\" data-level=\"2\">Long-term implications<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-final-thoughts\" data-level=\"2\">Final thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-22188825-cba1-4680-a1df-b868eb6694d1\">Download your free My Future Fund FAQs e-book and get the answers you need to prepare your business and support your employees<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-direct-costs-of-auto-enrolment\">Direct costs of auto-enrolment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-calculate-your-direct-payroll-costs\">Calculate your direct payroll costs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Your first step should be to calculate what the direct payroll costs are over the next few years and how this impacts your overall budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But bear in mind that corporation tax relief can be claimed on the employer contribution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There will also be an element of guesswork in your calculations, as you can&#8217;t be sure what choices your employees are likely to make. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If your company has no occupational pension, for example, an employee could still opt for a Personal Retirement Savings Account (PRSA) rather than an auto-enrolment pension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-consider-what-if-scenarios\">Consider &#8220;what-if&#8221; scenarios<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Also, you, as an employer could potentially have decisions to make. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For instance, if you already offer an occupational scheme, will you offer it to all new employees, or will you offer pension auto-enrolment as a stopgap until the new employee passes their probation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As such, your budget will need to factor in &#8220;what-if&#8221; scenarios based on different assumptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-remember-that-contribution-rates-will-rise-on-a-phased-basis\">Remember that contribution rates will rise on a phased basis<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Furthermore, you need to take into account the increasing contribution rates over the next 10 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In year one, employers are required to contribute 1.5% of an employee\u2019s gross salary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, this amount is increased on a phased basis over 10 years, with 1.5% added every three years, reaching 6% in the final year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Considering this, you should ensure your budget is set up as a rolling forecast, which looks at increased employer contributions, and allows you to re-evaluate plans regularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-review-your-benefits-packages\">Review your benefits packages<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>And to manage increasing future costs, you may need to review and adjust your overall benefits packages, possibly restructuring or reducing other benefits to offset pension contributions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, bear in mind that an employer&#8217;s contribution will also be capped at \u20ac80,000 gross annual salary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-create-a-buffer-for-potential-contribution-rate-increases-later-down-the-line\">Create a buffer for potential contribution rate increases later down the line<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Lastly, you should consider creating a buffer in your budget to accommodate potential increases in contribution rates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a possibility, as by year five at the latest, the Pension Authority, which will supervise the scheme, will be required to carry out an official review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The review will look, at among other items, the earning threshold for enrolment and contribution rates and will make recommendations to the government on possible changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, it&#8217;s unlikely that contribution rates will increase in the foreseeable future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For instance, in the UK, where pension auto-enrolment was introduced in 2012, the employer contribution stands at 3%, which is significantly lower than what the contribution rate in Ireland will be after 10 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-initial-setting-up-costs\">Initial setting up costs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There will also be costs outside of payroll in relation to setting up the scheme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For employers, the actual administration of the scheme will be relatively simple, as the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority (NAERSA), which will run it, will identify the eligible employees, and payroll software will make the necessary reductions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, employees must be informed about pension auto-enrolment and how it affects them individually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It&#8217;s not the employer&#8217;s responsibility to do a financial analysis of what pension would be most suitable for a particular employee, such as auto-enrolment, PRSA, or occupational.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, these questions are going to crop up, and your company may be forced to take a more active role in outlining the best options for employees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To make the process as smooth as possible, HR may have to communicate with each employee individually. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition, their contract will have to be reviewed from the perspective of pensions. This communication phase will take up time\u2014and time costs money, so include it in your budget calculations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-ongoing-administration-costs\">Ongoing administration costs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Auto-enrolment needs to be continuously managed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This includes monitoring the ages and earnings of your staff, re-enrolling lapsed employees after two years, and keeping up to date with any changes in legislation or requirements from the Pensions Authority. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You need to maintain detailed records of enrolled employees, their contributions, and any requests to join or leave the scheme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ben Bishop is chief product and technology officer at <a href=\"https:\/\/brightsg.com\/en-ie\/about-bright\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Bright<\/a>, a software company providing IT solutions for accountants and bookkeepers, with an office in Meath. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He foresees an increase in fees from payroll companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He says, &#8220;Moving forward, additional work will be involved in processing payrolls. If you currently outsource your payroll, you&#8217;ll likely see the fees increase due to the new work involved. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;If you&#8217;re processing your own payroll internally, talk to your employees and keep them informed about the process and how this will impact them.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition, while pension auto-enrolment is designed to be simple and to take the burden off employers, the scenario whereby an employer could potentially have to operate three pension schemes, that is pension auto-enrolment, PRSA, and an occupational pension, will add an administrative burden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And while for simplicity&#8217;s sake, some companies may like to just offer an occupational pension, this will not be a possibility, as employers cannot compel an employee to join an occupational scheme. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, this increased administration could mean increased costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-which-companies-will-be-most-impacted\">Which companies will be most impacted?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The impact of auto-enrolment varies across companies and industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The scheme is aimed at employees in lower-paid jobs, which up to now have had little pension coverage, and those employees mainly work in retail and hospitality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As such, their employers, which are mainly SMEs, are going to be the most impacted. For some, the increased costs could see them go out of business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul O&#8217;Donovan, managing partner at Cork-based accountancy practice <a href=\"https:\/\/paulodonovan.ie\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Paul O&#8217;Donovan &amp; Associates<\/a>, says, &#8220;It is going to be a double whammy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;These SMEs have been finding it difficult over the last few months, due to increased costs arising from a hike in the minimum wage and increased sick pay entitlements, and for hospitality, they are still feeling the effects of the higher VAT rate being reinstated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;While there has been some help in mitigating these costs in 2024, such as the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/enterprise.gov.ie\/en\/what-we-do\/supports-for-smes\/increased-cost-of-business-scheme\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Increased Cost of Business<\/a>&nbsp;scheme, which gives a grant of up&nbsp;to&nbsp;\u20ac5,000 against commercial rates, this grant has already expired, and many of these companies are going to need further help to manage the increased payroll costs associated with auto-enrolment.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"#gate-22188825-cba1-4680-a1df-b868eb6694d1\">Download your free My Future Fund FAQs e-book and get the answers you need to prepare your business and support your employees<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-long-term-implications\">Long-term implications<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As Paul sees it, the introduction of pension auto-enrolment will put pensions in general more in the spotlight as a key element of a benefits package. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He sees this as a good thing and predicts that employees will become more knowledgeable about the implications of various pension options. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul says, &#8220;It is increasingly difficult to recruit employees and pensions could be used more and more as a competitive tool to recruit and retain staff.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ben from Bright agrees. He says, &#8220;Employers may need to look at their scheme rates to match the top 6% rate in auto-enrolment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Many schemes in Ireland are currently capped at 5%, but there is evidence that companies are aligning their schemes to these auto-enrolment rates, even if the top rates will not apply for 10 years after auto-enrolment commences.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The impact of auto-enrolment is playing out over the next few years, and a timely review in five years should bring up any issues and show whether the scheme has had a knock-on effect of boosting other pension offerings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-final-thoughts\">Final thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Budgeting for pension auto-enrolment requires careful planning and a thorough understanding of both immediate and long-term financial impacts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Therefore, budgeting will need to be multifaceted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You need to consider the direct costs of employer contributions, administrative and compliance expenses, and potential impacts on cash flow. It will also significantly affect companies that currently offer no pension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bright also has an office in the UK and would previously have worked with clients preparing for the rollout of its pension auto-enrolment in 2012. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ben adds: &#8220;It&#8217;s unlikely that the financial impact of auto-enrolment will hinder the business&#8217;s performance, but if you&#8217;re not currently contributing to employee pensions, it will be a future cost to consider.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Editor&#8217;s note: This article was first published in July 2024 and has been updated for relevance.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta gated-content\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">My Future Fund FAQs<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p>Get the answers you need to prepare your business for My Future Fund automatic enrolment and support your employees.<\/p>\n<p><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-22188825-cba1-4680-a1df-b868eb6694d1\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Download your free e-book<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1215\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/05\/IT-hero-image-2-1215x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/05\/IT-hero-image-2-1215x810.jpg 1215w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div 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loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/z.5E3A0481_All-Uses.jpg 999w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<section class=\"more-topics alignfull has-grey-light-background-color wp-block-sage-post-topics\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12 col-lg-4\">\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"more-topics__title h2\">Browse more topics from this article<\/h3>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12 col-lg-8\">\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"post-tags__list\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-tags__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/tag\/hr-process\/\" class=\"post-tags__link button button--secondary\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHR processes\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-tags__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/tag\/my-future-fund-autoenrolment\/\" class=\"post-tags__link button button--secondary\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMy Future Fund (auto-enrolment)\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-tags__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/tag\/pensions\/\" class=\"post-tags__link button button--secondary\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPensions\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n<div class=\"alignfull wp-block-sage-related-posts\">\n\t<section class=\"related-posts card-grid has-dark-background-color\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"related-posts__heading related-posts__heading--featured h1\">Explore more wisdom<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row related-posts__featured\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-0 post-17757 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-free-guides-templates category-people-leadership category-trends-insights tag-ai tag-artificial-intelligence tag-business-intelligence tag-hr-process tag-hr-processes-medium-businesses tag-leading-people tag-managing-people tag-payroll business_type-small-business business_type-medium-sized-business card-post--is-clickable\"\n>\n\t<div class=\"card-post__media-wrapper\">\n\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/03\/The-HR-Payroll-Leaders-Report-CTA-Image-1200x810.jpeg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"A woman looks to camera with the Sage glow line in the background.\" loading=\"lazy\" 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Download the HR and Payroll Leaders\u2019 Report.\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row related-posts__non-featured\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"related-posts__heading related-posts__heading--more h4\">More on this Topic<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-1 post-17111 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-people-leadership category-trends-insights tag-business-planning tag-employee-benefits tag-hr-process tag-hr-processes-medium-businesses tag-looking-after-your-employees tag-my-future-fund-autoenrolment tag-pensions business_type-small-business business_type-medium-sized-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/auto-enrolment-payroll\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/03\/Sage_BrandShootNC_Feb2024_HR-Professionals_2665-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"Two colleagues discussing switching payroll\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/03\/Sage_BrandShootNC_Feb2024_HR-Professionals_2665-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/03\/Sage_BrandShootNC_Feb2024_HR-Professionals_2665-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/03\/Sage_BrandShootNC_Feb2024_HR-Professionals_2665-1215x810.jpg 1215w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-30T13:10:56+00:00\">30 January, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">8 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tHow auto-enrolment will impact your payroll budget\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-2 post-17134 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-people-leadership tag-my-future-fund-autoenrolment business_type-small-business business_type-medium-sized-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/communicate-auto-enrolment-to-employees\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/08\/GettyImages-1272758830-1440x810-1-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"Colleagues around a table\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/08\/GettyImages-1272758830-1440x810-1-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/08\/GettyImages-1272758830-1440x810-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/08\/GettyImages-1272758830-1440x810-1.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-30T10:49:49+00:00\">30 January, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">7 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tHow to communicate auto-enrolment to your employees\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-3 post-15901 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-money-matters category-people-leadership tag-bookkeeping tag-business-finances tag-hr-process tag-hr-processes-medium-businesses tag-payroll tag-tax business_type-small-business business_type-medium-sized-business business_type-accountants\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/payroll-changes-irish-employers\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1192884896-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1192884896-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1192884896-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1192884896-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-30T10:42:44+00:00\">30 January, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">6 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tPayroll changes for Irish employers to know about in 2026\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-4 post-15303 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-strategy-legal-operations tag-business-finances tag-hr-process tag-hr-processes-medium-businesses tag-my-future-fund-autoenrolment tag-payroll tag-pensions business_type-small-business business_type-medium-sized-business business_type-accountants\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/auto-enrolment-faqs-workplace-pensions\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-643927002-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-643927002-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-643927002-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-643927002-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-02T12:27:26+00:00\">2 January, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">8 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tMy Future Fund FAQs: Answers to questions on workplace pensions in Ireland\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn about budget implications of pension auto-enrolment, including payroll, setting-up and administration costs, and long-term ramifications.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":912,"featured_media":15469,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":false,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"sage_hide_published_date":false,"sage_hide_read_time":false,"sage_hide_share_buttons":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[163,165],"tags":[133,104,144],"business_type":[5,4],"lilypad":[],"context":[381],"industry":[],"persona":[],"imagine_tag":[],"coauthors":[386],"class_list":["post-15463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-money-matters","category-strategy-legal-operations","tag-hr-process","tag-my-future-fund-autoenrolment","tag-pensions","business_type-small-business","business_type-medium-sized-business"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-ie","author_name":"R\u00f3is\u00edn Killeen","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2024\/07\/BrandShootSF_Oct2021_FinancialServices_10559-original.jpg","imagine_tags":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice Ireland","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/912"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15463"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15463\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/15469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=15463"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=15463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}