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INDUSTRY PAYROLL EDUCATION
Payroll for Schools and Education Providers in Ireland
School payroll starts with one deceptively simple question: who is actually your employee to pay?
Irish education payroll is not one single system. Some staff are already paid through the Department of Education or other public-sector payroll arrangements, while other employees are paid directly by a Board of Management, school, college or education provider. The payroll process has to reflect the real employment and paymaster structure before a single payslip is produced.
Payrollcompany.ie provides managed payroll for the staff your organisation is responsible for paying directly. That can include caretakers, cleaners, administrative and ancillary employees, term-time staff and other directly employed personnel, depending on the school type and employment arrangement. We handle the recurring payroll work, Revenue reporting and agreed payroll administration while keeping the boundary with Department-paid staff clear.
Payroll pricing snapshot
Monthly · 1–9 employees
€30 / employee
Monthly · 10–20 employees
€25 / employee
21+ employees
Custom quote
Department or ETB payroll stays where it is. Our service is for employees your school, Board or education provider is responsible for paying directly.
Help sectors
Who we help
We support Boards of Management and other education employers that have their own payroll responsibilities, as well as private schools, independent education providers, colleges and training organisations where the organisation itself is the employer and paymaster. The service can also accommodate more complex arrangements involving several sites or shared staff, provided the legal employer and payroll responsibility are clearly confirmed.
Boards of Management.
Private and independent schools.
Payroll for employees paid directly by the school, including teaching or non-teaching staff where the school itself operates PAYE payroll.
Colleges and training providers
Payroll for directly employed staff where the organisation operates its own Irish payroll.
Multi-site education organisations.
A consistent payroll process for employees working across more than one location, with the employer structure confirmed before processing begins.
EMPLOYER & PAYMASTER
Not all school staff are on the same payroll
The first step is to confirm who is responsible for paying the employee. The Department of Education Payroll Division provides payroll services for teaching and non-teaching staff across several recognised school sectors. Other employees remain the responsibility of the school, Board or another employing body. The exact position depends on school type, staff category and the employment scheme that applies.
You can check the Department’s current scope through its Payroll Division information. We use that boundary as part of the onboarding review rather than assuming that every person working in a school belongs on the school’s own payroll.
| Existing public payroll arrangement | School or provider payroll |
|---|---|
| Staff already paid through a Department, ETB or other established public payroll arrangement. | Staff your Board, school or education provider directly employs and is responsible for paying. |
| The existing payroll remains in place. Payrollcompany.ie does not replace it. | Payrollcompany.ie can process the agreed payroll where the organisation is the employer/paymaster. |
| Exact categories vary by school type and scheme, so employee status should be checked rather than inferred from job title. | Typical examples can include caretakers, cleaners, administrative staff, ancillary workers and other directly employed personnel. |
School secretaries need a status check, not an assumption
School secretary payroll has changed materially in recent years. The Department has provided a payroll service for certain previously grant-funded school secretaries since 1 September 2023, and 2026 circulars continue to set pay changes for that group. That means an old payroll setup or an old assumption that a secretary must be Board-paid may no longer reflect the current arrangement.
Before including a secretary in a Board-managed payroll, we confirm the current employment and paymaster position. The Department’s June 2026 school secretary salary circular is one example of why the category has to be checked against live Department arrangements.
PRICING
School and education payroll pricing
Our monthly payroll pricing is based on employee numbers. The exact service scope is agreed before the first run, particularly where the payroll includes unusual pay scales, shared staffing arrangements or additional reporting requirements.
| Employees | Monthly payroll |
|---|---|
| 1-9 | €30 per employee / month |
| 10-20 | €25 per employee / month |
| 21+ | Custom quote |
SERVICE SCOPE
What we handle for education payroll
No missed filings. No mystery invoices. No being passed between five different support agents. Here’s what that actually looks like in practice.
Regular payroll processing
PAYE, USC and PRSI.
Payroll calculations using the applicable employee information, pay inputs and current payroll rules.
Revenue Payroll Notifications
Retrieval and use of the latest available RPN before payroll is run. Read the RPN guide
Revenue payroll submissions
Payroll information reported in line with the current real-time reporting requirements and the agreed authorisation structure.
Starters and leavers
Processing employee commencements, cessations and related changes within payroll.
Structured pay and increments
Application of confirmed salary scales, increments or revised rates where the school has established which terms apply to the employee.
Term-time and annualised pay
Payroll processing built around the confirmed working pattern and employment terms rather than treating every employee as a standard 52-week arrangement.
Job-sharing and variable hours
pro-rata and variable payroll inputs processed from the employment terms and hours supplied by the employer.
Enhanced Reporting Requirements
Support for reportable payments or benefits that fall within the current ERR categories. See the ERR guide
MyFutureFund administration
Payroll contribution processing and administration using the enrolment information supplied through the statutory system. See the MyFutureFund employer guide
Digital payslips and payroll reports
Employee payslips and employer reports provided as agreed for the payroll process.
Payroll corrections
Where an error or late change is identified, we work through the payroll correction and related reporting rather than simply altering the next net-pay figure.
Education payroll runs on
The detail that education payroll runs on
Same core Revenue timetable as any Irish payroll with sector-specific inputs layered on top.
Still works to the pay date
Education payroll may have sector-specific inputs, but the core Revenue timetable is the same. Revenue requires employers to report payroll information on or before the day an employee is paid. Before payroll is run, the latest Revenue Payroll Notification (RPN) must be requested and used for the employee.
Revenue also makes an important responsibility point: the employer remains responsible for ensuring payroll compliance whether payroll is run through software, a payroll company, another agency or ROS. Outsourcing gives you a specialist process, but it does not transfer the school or employing body's statutory responsibility.
Revenue payroll submission guidance →Increments and Department circulars
Education pay can change during the year. Department circulars, public-service agreements, employment contracts or local arrangements can alter a salary scale, increment date or effective rate. The payroll risk is not only using the wrong number. It is using the right number from the wrong date, or applying a scale to an employee who is not actually covered by it.
Our role is to process the confirmed payroll terms accurately. The school or employing body remains responsible for confirming which circular, scale, grade or employment arrangement applies. Once that is established, payroll can apply the revised rate from the correct effective date and calculate arrears where required.
For current Department-paid categories, Department of Education salary scales and circulars remain the appropriate reference point. For directly employed staff, the applicable contract, scheme or circular should be confirmed before payroll is changed.
See Department of Education salary scales and circulars →Annualised pay need a clear setup
A school employee can work a pattern that follows the academic year rather than a conventional 52-week schedule. Some directly employed staff work only during term, some have variable hours, and some arrangements spread pay across the year. Payroll needs to know which model applies before calculating regular pay, leave-related pay or final pay.
Term-time status does not remove statutory annual leave rights. The Workplace Relations Commission confirms that full-time, part-time, temporary and casual employees accrue annual leave, with the statutory calculation linked to hours worked. The exact payroll treatment still depends on the employment terms and working pattern, so annualised pay should not be used as a shortcut for deciding leave entitlement.
See WRC annual leave guidance →Job-sharing and employees working across more than one school
Job-sharing and shared staffing arrangements need more than a percentage entered into payroll. Pay, hours, scale position and leave-related calculations must follow the confirmed employment arrangement. If a staff member works across several schools, the first question is whether there is one employer, more than one employment, or another formal arrangement between the schools.
Payroll should not decide that legal structure simply by splitting the cost between locations. We process the arrangement once the employer of record, payroll responsibility and agreed allocation have been confirmed. That distinction is particularly important where different Boards or entities are involved.
Employees aged 66 to 70
Turning 66 does not automatically mean every employee moves to PRSI Class J. Since the State Pension (Contributory) can be drawn down between age 66 and 70, PRSI treatment depends on the employee's age, pension position and the class that otherwise applies to the employment.
Department of Social Protection guidance states that Class A can continue for employees under 70 who are not receiving State Pension (Contributory), where Class A is the appropriate class for the employment. Class J applies in specified circumstances, including certain employees over pensionable age who are receiving State Pension (Contributory), and employees aged 70 or over. The important payroll control is not to switch class simply because a birthday has passed.
Current Department of Social Protection PRSI guidance →Sick leave and other absences
Statutory sick leave remains at five days per calendar year. The statutory scheme applies after 13 weeks' continuous service and pays 70% of usual daily earnings, capped at €110 per day, subject to the certification and other statutory conditions. It is a minimum floor, not a replacement for a contractual or sectoral sick-pay arrangement that is more favourable.
The WRC sick leave guidance sets out the statutory conditions, while the Department of Enterprise confirmed that the entitlement remains at five days rather than following the earlier planned increase.
Schools should therefore tell payroll which sick-pay arrangement applies to each directly employed category. The payroll entry is the output of that employment decision, not the place where the underlying entitlement should be invented or guessed.
The same principle applies when an employee receives a Department of Social Protection payment such as Illness Benefit. The employment leave entitlement and the PAYE treatment are separate questions. Revenue can adjust the employee's tax position through the RPN, so payroll should follow current Revenue guidance for the specific benefit rather than applying one generic rule to every absence.
WRC sick leave guidance →MyFutureFund and education employees
MyFutureFund has been operating since 1 January 2026. Eligibility and enrolment are administered through the statutory auto-enrolment system. NAERSA identifies and enrols eligible employees using payroll data. The employer or payroll provider should not make its own substitute eligibility decision.
For schools and education providers, existing pension coverage can matter. An employee with qualifying supplementary pension contributions through payroll may not be enrolled in the same way as an employee with no qualifying pension coverage. Our role is to administer the payroll contribution process using the enrolment information supplied through MyFutureFund and the employee's confirmed payroll record.
MyFutureFund employer guide →ERR and expenses for directly employed staff
Schools sometimes reimburse travel and subsistence, provide qualifying small benefits or make another payment that falls within Enhanced Reporting Requirements (ERR). Where a payment or benefit is within the current ERR categories, Revenue requires the relevant details to be reported on or before the payment or provision date.
The label used internally does not decide whether a payment is tax-free or reportable. The underlying conditions have to be met. We process ERR within the agreed payroll service where the school supplies the required information in time for the reporting deadline.
See our Enhanced Reporting Requirements guide for the detailed categories and reporting workflow, or read Revenue's current ERR guidance.
Still needs normal payroll controls
Grant funding can affect how a Board budgets for a role, but it does not turn the employee into a different kind of PAYE worker. Where the Board is the employer and paymaster, payroll still has to apply the correct pay, tax, PRSI and reporting treatment to the employment.
The Department operates specific funding arrangements for recognised schools, including the Ancillary Services Grant in relevant primary and special schools. Those funding arrangements and the employment terms attached to a role can change over time, so the school should confirm the current grant or circular that applies. Payroll reports can then be structured to help the school reconcile payroll costs against its own funding records without suggesting that the payroll service determines grant entitlement.
Ancillary Services Grant →how we work
How education payroll works with us
1
We map the payroll responsibility
We identify the staff your organisation actually pays, note any employees already on Department or other public payrolls, and confirm the pay frequency and current payroll setup.
2
You confirm the employment terms
You provide or confirm the applicable salary, hours, scale, increment, term-time arrangement, pension information and any employee-specific conditions that affect payroll.
3
You send the pay-run inputs
That can include hours, absences, new starters, leavers, pay changes, expenses and any other variable information needed for the period.
4
We prepare and review the payroll
We process the agreed payroll using the latest RPNs and the confirmed employee information, then prepare the payroll for approval under the agreed workflow.
5
Payroll is reported and payslips are issued
The applicable Revenue payroll reporting is completed within the authorised service scope, and employees receive digital payslips with management reports supplied as agreed.
6
We stay involved
School payroll changes during the year. New circulars, increments, staffing changes, leave and pension information can all affect later runs, so the process includes ongoing support rather than a one-off setup.
SWITCHING PROVIDER
Switching an existing school payroll
A mid-year move is possible, but it needs a controlled handover. We review the existing employee list, year-to-date payroll figures, Revenue setup, pay frequency, current balances and any known payroll issues. For education clients, we also confirm which staff belong in the directly managed payroll and which staff remain outside it.
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We then agree a takeover date and work around the information and access available from the existing provider and the employer. The aim is continuity, but the process should not promise a risk-free handover where records are incomplete or responsibilities have not yet been confirmed.
Common pitfalls
Common school payroll mistakes
Assuming job title decides the paymaster
A teacher, secretary, caretaker or administrator can sit within different payroll arrangements depending on school type and scheme. Confirm the actual employment first.
Applying a pay circular without confirming scope
A rate can be current and still be wrong for a particular employee if the circular or scale does not cover that employment.
Moving an employee to Class J at age 66 automatically
PRSI treatment can depend on whether the employee is receiving State Pension (Contributory) and the class that otherwise applies.
Sending ERR information after the payment.
Leaving an old secretary setup unchanged
Department payroll arrangements for certain previously grant-funded school secretaries have changed, so historic treatment should not be carried forward without checking.
Treating term-time pay as a leave calculation
Annualised or term-time pay arrangements do not remove the need to calculate statutory leave correctly from the employment pattern and applicable terms.
Assuming payroll decides MyFutureFund eligibility
NAERSA identifies and enrols eligible employees. Payroll administers the contribution information that follows.
Treating grant funding as the payroll rule
Funding can affect the role and budget, but PAYE payroll still depends on the employment and current tax rules.
WHY CHOOSE US
Why schools and education providers choose a specialist payroll process
SCOPE
Clear scope
We establish which employees belong in your payroll before the first run, rather than assuming every staff member in the organisation is paid the same way.
INPUTS
Education-specific inputs
Term-time patterns, confirmed pay scales, increments, shared staffing and grant-funded roles are handled as part of the real payroll workflow, not forced into a generic template.
CONTACT
A dedicated contact
You have a dedicated payroll manager who understands the agreed payroll setup and recurring information requirements.
PRICING
Transparent pricing
boundaries
Responsibility boundaries
Frequently asked questions
Education payroll questions
Do you process payroll for teachers and SNAs?
We do not replace an existing Department or ETB payroll arrangement. Where a teacher, SNA or other employee is already paid through that system, that payroll remains in place. Our managed service covers employees your school or education provider is responsible for paying directly.
Which school staff can Payrollcompany.ie process?
The service can cover directly employed staff such as caretakers, cleaners, administrative and ancillary employees, term-time workers and other personnel paid by the school, Board or education provider. We confirm the actual employer and paymaster for each category before onboarding.
Are school secretaries paid by the school or the Department?
It depends on the employment arrangement. The Department has operated payroll for certain previously grant-funded school secretaries since September 2023, while other secretary arrangements can differ. We confirm the current status rather than assuming that every secretary belongs on the same payroll.
How much does school payroll cost?
Monthly payroll is €30 per employee for 1-9 employees and €25 per employee for 10-20 employees, with a custom quote for 21 or more. The final scope is agreed before onboarding. See payroll pricing
Can you apply Department pay scales and increments?
Yes, where the school confirms that a particular scale, grade, increment or circular applies to the employee. Payrollcompany.ie processes the confirmed terms and effective date; it does not independently decide which employment scheme governs the role.
How does term-time employment affect annual leave?
Term-time work does not remove statutory annual leave rights. The calculation depends on the employee’s hours, contract and working pattern. Payroll should reflect those confirmed terms rather than assuming annualised pay settles the leave entitlement. See WRC annual leave guidance
What PRSI applies to an employee aged 66 to 70?
There is no automatic switch to Class J at age 66. Employees under 70 who are not receiving State Pension (Contributory) can remain within Class A where that is the appropriate class for their employment. Class J applies in specified circumstances, including certain employees receiving State Pension (Contributory) and employees aged 70 or over. The individual position should be checked before changing payroll treatment.
Is MyFutureFund relevant to school staff?
It can be. NAERSA identifies and enrols eligible employees using the statutory auto-enrolment system. Existing qualifying pension coverage can affect enrolment. We administer the payroll contribution process once the official enrolment information is available. Read the MyFutureFund employer guide
Do you handle ERR for education employers?
Yes, within the agreed payroll service. Where reportable expenses or benefits fall within the current ERR categories, we can process the reporting using the information supplied by the employer in time for the applicable deadline. Read the ERR guide
Can several schools share a payroll for a shared employee?
A shared staffing arrangement can be processed once the legal employer, payroll responsibility and agreed allocation are clear. Payroll should not create the employment structure by simply splitting the cost between schools.
Can you take over directly employed school staff mid-year?
Yes. We review the existing payroll, year-to-date figures, Revenue setup and employee scope, then agree a controlled transition date. Continuity depends on complete records and timely access from the employer and previous provider.