Clerical Officer Salary Ireland 2026: Full Civil Service Pay Scale

Q: How much does a Clerical Officer earn in Ireland?

A Clerical Officer starts on EUR 611.75 a week, which is EUR 31,811 a year. The top of the ordinary scale is EUR 905.60 a week, or EUR 47,091 a year, and the second long service increment brings it to EUR 958.80 a week, about EUR 49,858 a year. Figures are from Circular 22/2026, effective 1 June 2026.

Q: What is the starting salary for a Clerical Officer?

EUR 611.75 a week, or EUR 31,811 a year, at point 1 of the PPC scale. That is the standard starting point for a new entrant, though previous relevant public service experience can sometimes place you higher.

Q: How long does it take to reach the top of the Clerical Officer scale?

14 years to reach the top ordinary point of EUR 905.60 a week. The first long service increment follows after 3 more years at that maximum, and the second after 6 years, so it is 20 years in total to reach EUR 958.80 a week.

The short answer

A newly qualified clerical officer starts on €31,811 a year. After 20 years of service you reach the top of the scale on €49,858. Allowances for promoted posts and, for some teachers, qualifications are paid on top of these figures.

Starting salary

€31,811

about €2,302 a month take-home

Top of the scale

€49,858

about €3,274 a month take-home

Figures from Circular 22/2026, effective 1 June 2026. Take-home is for a single person with standard credits, after income tax, USC, PRSI and ASC.

What point of the scale am I on?

This is where most salary pages get it wrong. Your point is not always the same as your years of service, because one of the two scales carries incremental skips. Pick your situation:

When did you start teaching? Years of service completed

You are on point 1

€31,811

The full pay scale, every point

Clerical Officer, PPC scale

PPC means Personal Pension Contribution. This is the scale for anyone recruited since 6 April 1995, which is effectively everyone joining today. The Department publishes it as a weekly rate, and the annual figure is that rate multiplied by 52.

Point	Per week	Gross / year	Take-home / year	Take-home / month
1	€611.75	€31,811	€27,626	€2,302
2	€645.43	€33,562	€28,901	€2,408
3	€654.01	€34,009	€29,225	€2,435
4	€670.69	€34,876	€29,847	€2,487
5	€695.32	€36,157	€30,745	€2,562
6	€719.93	€37,436	€31,643	€2,637
7	€744.51	€38,715	€32,539	€2,712
8	€762.42	€39,646	€33,192	€2,766
9	€782.74	€40,702	€33,933	€2,828
10	€806.29	€41,927	€34,792	€2,899
11	€822.89	€42,790	€35,398	€2,950
12	€846.23	€44,004	€36,249	€3,021
13	€869.42	€45,210	€36,924	€3,077
14	€905.60	€47,091	€37,880	€3,157
LSI 1	€934.03	€48,570	€38,631	€3,219
LSI 2	€958.80	€49,858	€39,285	€3,274

Take-home assumes a single person with the personal and employee tax credits, no other income, and ASC at Single Public Service Pension Scheme rates. Your main superannuation contribution is deducted separately and depends on your scheme.

A separate non-PPC scale exists for staff recruited before 6 April 1995, who pay modified PRSI rather than Class A. It is a small and shrinking group, and because their PRSI is charged differently the take-home figures here would not apply to them. The non-PPC scale is set out in the same circular.

What you earn in each year of your career

On the ppc scale scale you move up one point for each year of satisfactory service, with no skipped points. That means 20 years of service to reach the top.

Years of service	Your point	Gross salary
Year 1	Point 1	€31,811
Year 2	Point 2	€33,562
Year 3	Point 3	€34,009
Year 4	Point 4	€34,876
Year 5	Point 5	€36,157
Year 6	Point 6	€37,436
Year 7	Point 7	€38,715
Year 8	Point 8	€39,646
Year 9	Point 9	€40,702
Year 10	Point 10	€41,927
Year 11	Point 11	€42,790
Year 12	Point 12	€44,004
Year 13	Point 13	€45,210
Year 14	Point 14	€47,091
Year 17	Long Service Increment 1	€48,570
Year 20	Long Service Increment 2	€49,858

Progression is automatic on your incremental date as long as your service is satisfactory. Time spent on a career break or otherwise out of service pushes your incremental date back. The two Long Service Increments are not annual increments: they are paid for time served at the maximum of the scale, LSI 1 after 3 years and LSI 2 after 6 years. That is why they appear several years after the last point rather than one after the other.

What comes off your salary

Four deductions apply before your pay reaches your account, and one of them is specific to the public service.

Income tax, USC and PRSI

The same as any employee. Income tax at 20% up to €44,000 for a single person and 40% above, USC in bands from 0.5% to 8%, and PRSI at 4.2%.

ASC, the public service extra

The Additional Superannuation Contribution. Nothing on the first €34,500, then 3.33% to €60,000 and 3.5% above for Single Scheme members. Pre-2013 scheme members pay 10% and 10.5% on the same bands. It reduces your income tax but not your USC or PRSI.

One thing to be aware of: the take-home figures on this page include ASC but not your main superannuation contribution, which is charged separately and depends on which pension scheme you joined. Your actual net pay will be somewhat lower. We show ASC because its rates are published and identical for everyone, while the main contribution varies.

Questions people ask most

How much does a Clerical Officer earn in Ireland?

A Clerical Officer starts on €611.75 a week, which is €31,811 a year. The top of the ordinary scale is €905.60 a week, or €47,091 a year, and the second long service increment brings it to €958.80 a week, about €49,858 a year. Figures are from Circular 22/2026, effective 1 June 2026.

Why is Clerical Officer pay shown as a weekly rate?

Because that is how the Department publishes it. Clerical Officer is one of the few general service grades set out as a weekly rate rather than an annual salary, along with Services Officer and a few others. To get the annual figure you multiply the weekly rate by 52. Many salary sites quote only the annual number, which hides the fact that the official figure is weekly.

What is the starting salary for a Clerical Officer?

€611.75 a week, or €31,811 a year, at point 1 of the PPC scale. That is the standard starting point for a new entrant, though previous relevant public service experience can sometimes place you higher.

How long does it take to reach the top of the Clerical Officer scale?

14 years to reach the top ordinary point of €905.60 a week. The first long service increment follows after 3 more years at that maximum, and the second after 6 years, so it is 20 years in total to reach €958.80 a week.

What are LSI1 and LSI2 on the civil service pay scale?

Long service increments. They are not ordinary annual increments: LSI1 is paid after 3 years of satisfactory service at the maximum of the scale, and LSI2 after 6 years at the maximum. Nearly every general service grade has both, and they are the reason the published maximum of a grade is higher than the last ordinary point.

What does PPC mean on a civil service pay scale?

Personal Pension Contribution. The PPC scale applies to civil servants recruited on or after 6 April 1995, who pay full Class A PRSI and make a personal pension contribution. A separate non-PPC scale covers staff recruited before that date, who pay modified PRSI. Anyone joining the civil service today is on the PPC scale.

Do Clerical Officers get an increment every year?

Yes, one point a year on your incremental date, subject to satisfactory service. There is no examination to pass. Time out of service, such as an unpaid career break, pushes your incremental date back accordingly.

What is the difference between a Clerical Officer and an Executive Officer?

Executive Officer is the next general service grade up, with more responsibility for managing work and staff. The pay gap is substantial: an EO starts on €38,803 a year against €31,811 for a CO, and the EO scale tops out around €63,227 with long service increments against €49,858. Many Clerical Officers move up through internal competitions.

How much ASC does a Clerical Officer pay?

Very little at the start of the scale. The Additional Superannuation Contribution charges nothing on the first €34,500 of pensionable pay, and a Clerical Officer on point 1 earns €31,811, so no ASC is due at all. Once you pass €34,500 the Single Public Service Pension Scheme rate of 3.33% applies to the excess.

How do you become a Clerical Officer in Ireland?

Through open competitions run by the Public Appointments Service and advertised on publicjobs.ie. Competitions are usually held nationally with panels formed by location, and appointments are made from those panels as vacancies arise.

When do civil service salaries increase next?

These rates come from the Public Service Agreement 2024-2026, which applied a 1% increase on 1 June 2026. The agreement is in its final year, so the next rates depend on the agreement that replaces it. We update this page when a new circular is published.

Where these figures come from

Every euro figure on this page is taken from the official circulars below, not from salary surveys or crowd-sourced averages. Last checked 2026-08-13.

Circular 22/2026: Application of 1 June 2026 Pay Adjustment, Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation
Organisation and Pay Grading Structure, Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation
Additional Superannuation Contribution (ASC): rates and thresholds, Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation

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Clerical Officer salary in Ireland