Announced in the Budget last December, the holiday from Employer's PRSI came into effect from June, though backdated to 1 January. Subject to certain conditions being met, employers will not be liable for PRSI in respect of new hires for a period of 12 months from the date of employment. The employee's PRSI is not affected.

The main conditions attaching to the scheme, as outlined by the Dept of Social Protection, are:

• The employee concerned must have been on the Live-Register (Unemployed) for at least 6 months
• The job must be full-time and must be new and additional – employers will not be allowed to substitute existing employees to avail of the scheme
• The employer will be required to furnish an up-to-date Tax Clearance Certificate
• Employers will be limited to a maximum participation rate of 5% of their existing workforce or, for smaller companies, a maximum of 5 new jobs
• The job must last for 6 months or more. If it does not, the PRSI exempt amounts will have to be repaid by the employer

The take from Employer's PRSI overall is very significant. The most reliable recent estimate is €5.945 bn. This figure relates to 2008, and clearly will have declined since then. The proportion of employer to employee contributions is about 4:1.

Information on the scheme is being handled by the Employer Job (PRSI) Incentive Scheme section, Department of Social Protection, Floor 2, Shannon Lodge, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim-LoCall 1890 927 999.