Current VAT rates in Ireland
Ireland’s standard VAT rate is 23%, with reduced rates of 13.5% and 9%, a livestock rate of 4.8% and a flat-rate compensation percentage of 4.5% for farmers. These are the rates set out in Revenue’s published current-VAT-rates table, effective 1 January 2026, as of this page’s review. VAT rates change at budgets, so treat any figure here as correct as of that date rather than fixed.
The rates
| Rate | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Standard | 23% |
| Reduced | 13.5% |
| Second reduced | 9% |
| Livestock | 4.8% |
| Flat-rate farmers | 4.5% |
All five figures come from Revenue’s published current-VAT-rates table, effective 1 January 2026, as of this page’s review.
What each headline means
The standard rate, 23%, is the default. Anything that Revenue has not placed in a lower band is charged at the standard rate, so it applies far more widely than the reduced rates do.
The reduced rate (13.5%) and second reduced rate (9%) apply to specific categories that Revenue defines. This page does not list which goods and services fall into each band, and that omission is deliberate. Those categories shift at budgets and through in-year changes, and Revenue’s own rates database is the authority on which item sits where. Any static list would go stale, and a stale list on a tax page is worse than no list at all.
The livestock rate (4.8%) and the flat-rate farmers percentage (4.5%) are agricultural by name. The flat-rate percentage is a compensation figure for farmers who are not registered for VAT, rather than a rate charged on a shop sale, which is why it sits apart from the others.
Rates change at budgets
VAT rates are policy, and policy moves. A budget can raise or lower a rate, move a category from one band to another, or introduce a temporary rate that later expires. That is why every figure on this page is stated as of a date, not as a permanent fact.
Around’s VAT calculator reads a versioned dataset rather than hard-coded numbers. When Revenue changes a rate, the dataset is updated and the calculator follows. So the tool answers with the rate in force for the version it holds, and the answer moves when Revenue does.
The mechanics of a single rate are simple, and worth seeing once. Take a net price of €100 at the standard 23% rate: the VAT is €23 and the gross price is €123. At 13.5%, the same €100 net becomes €113.50 gross. Working backwards behaves differently, and this is where people slip. A gross price of €123 at 23% breaks down to €100 net with €23 of VAT inside it. A gross price of €500 at 23% is €406.50 net and €93.50 VAT; the same €500 at 13.5% is €440.53 net and €59.47 VAT.
The common trap is treating the backward step as a subtraction. Taking 23% off €123 gives €94.71, which is wrong. The VAT sits inside the gross figure as a fraction of the whole, so removing it is a division, not a flat percentage cut. The calculator handles this direction for you.
Checking a specific item
To find the rate for a particular good or service, use Revenue’s VAT rates database, a searchable list where Revenue records the rate that applies to each item and keeps it current as the rules change.
Questions people ask
What is the VAT rate in Ireland?
Ireland's standard VAT rate is 23%, alongside reduced rates of 13.5% and 9%, a 4.8% livestock rate, and a 4.5% flat-rate percentage for farmers, as published by Revenue and effective from 1 January 2026. Which rate applies to a given item or service depends on Revenue's VAT rates database, since goods are sorted into these bands by category rather than by a single universal rule. Rates and their coverage can change, so this reflects the position as of this review.