Ireland auto-enrols 760,000 workers into a pension fund from January 2026 — hospitality payroll hit first.
On 1 January 2026 every Irish employer began running My Future Fund, the state auto-enrolment pension administered by NAERSA (the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority). Every worker aged 23–60 earning over €20,000, not already in a qualifying occupational scheme or payroll PRSA (Personal Retirement Savings Account), was enrolled on the spot. The Department of Social Protection counts ~760,000 workers across ~85,000 employers. Contributions begin at employer 1.5% / employee 1.5% / state 0.5% and step up every three years to 6% / 6% / 2% by 2035, capped at €80,000 of pay. NAERSA itself opened in August 2025; employer registration in December 2025. Penalties under the Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System Act 2024 run €5,000–€50,000 per breach, with imprisonment available for serious non-compliance, and unregistered employers accrue the contribution debt whether they have signed up or not.
01The pain
Twenty-six days. That is what stood between NAERSA opening its employer registration window in December 2025 and 1 January 2026, when My Future Fund — Ireland's auto-enrolment pension — went live on every payroll in the country.3 The agency itself only opened in August 2025. The Act passed in 2024. Dublin publicans had Christmas trading week to read it.
The Department of Social Protection puts "around 800,000 workers" in scope: those "between 23 and 60 years of age, who are earning more than €20,000 a year, and who are not already paying into a pension".1 Hospitality bears the brunt. Hotels, restaurants and pubs run on part-time, seasonal rotas; staff sitting just over the €20,000 line, outside any existing scheme, are exactly the workers the Act was written to catch. NFP Ireland's worked example walks a 50-staff SME on €30k average pay from "around €22,500" in employer contributions in year one to "around €90,000 by year ten",3 as the schedule climbs from 1.5%/1.5%/0.5% in 2026 to 6%/6%/2% by 2035, capped at €80,000 of pay.4 The AEPN drops eligibility into payroll mid-cycle. Re-enrolment pulls every opt-out back in every two years.
By 2035 a publican paying a full-time bartender on €30,000 transfers €1,800 a year into NAERSA before the matching deduction comes off the bartender's wage. Fines start at €5,000 per breach. Unregistered employers accrue the debt anyway.3
Further reading
- 1 Department of Social Protection (gov.ie) — "My Future Fund" press release — verbatim: NAERSA established as the central administrator; ~800,000 workers in scope; eligibility 23–60 earning over €20,000 / not already in a pension; phased contribution schedule: gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/press-releases/my-future-fund/
- 2 The Irish Times (2 January 2026) — "If you earn more than €20,000 you will now have to pay into a pension scheme" — operator-side framing of the launch and SME-owner reactions: irishtimes.com/business/work/2026/01/02/if-you-earn-more-than-20000-you-will-now-have-to-pay-into-a-pension-scheme/
- 3 NFP Ireland — "Auto-enrolment 2026: What Irish employers need to know" — payroll-software burden, AEPNs, re-enrolment cycle, scheme re-testing, ~760,000 workers / ~85,000 employers, 50-staff SME cost-curve example €22,500 → €90,000 over a decade, €5,000–€50,000 fine band: nfpireland.ie/media/insights/auto-enrolment-what-irish-employers-need-to-know-for-2026/
- 4 Citizens Information (citizensinformation.ie) — "Auto-enrolment pension – MyFutureFund" — phased contribution schedule (1.5%/1.5%/0.5% to 6%/6%/2%), €80,000 salary cap, eligibility, opt-out and re-enrolment mechanics: citizensinformation.ie/en/money-and-tax/personal-finance/pensions/auto-enrolment/
02Who solves this today
Irish-market vendors that publicly self-market on their own homepage to employers running Irish payroll on the My Future Fund / auto-enrolment / NAERSA niche — software whose front-page copy explicitly names My Future Fund, auto-enrolment, or NAERSA AEPN handling. Each entry verified live and self-marketed in the niche on the date of writing. Inclusion is not endorsement. The list is intentionally narrow.
Listed providers publicly self-market to Irish employers on the My Future Fund / auto-enrolment / NAERSA niche from their own homepage. Inclusion is not endorsement. Several adjacent vendors were considered and excluded — Big Red Cloud's homepage frames itself on general accounting and payroll rather than naming the My Future Fund niche on the front of the site (the auto-enrolment material lives in their blog/release-notes surface); Collsoft's homepage centres on Revenue compliance and customer support without naming My Future Fund or NAERSA on the homepage; Sage Ireland's blog discusses My Future Fund but the Sage Payroll product page does not self-market in the niche on its own homepage at the date of writing. All were dropped under the precedent that two verified entries beat three with a weak link. Trade-press coverage and the Department of Social Protection / NFP Ireland positions cited above in section 01 are the source of the operator-side narrative, not solution providers.
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