Companies pay a contractor in Ireland by euro transfer over SEPA to the contractor’s IBAN, from their own bank, through a transfer service, or through a payout platform that also produces the contract and invoices. Ireland has used the euro since 1 January 1999 (European Commission, checked 2026-09-29) and has no currency control, so moving money is the easy part. What decides the tool is where your money sits and how much status evidence you want on file.
Status is the Irish pressure point. In October 2023 the Supreme Court’s Karshan (Domino’s Pizza) judgment set a five-question test for employment, and Revenue now expects businesses to keep evidence of that analysis for each worker and to operate PAYE for anyone reclassified (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). The contractor, a sole trader or their own limited company, pays their own tax: a sole trader owes income tax, USC and Class S PRSI of 4.2%, rising to 4.35% on 1 October 2026 (gov.ie, checked 2026-09-29). A foreign private client withholds nothing.
For one contractor with several clients, a SEPA transfer or Wise is enough. A team, or one person working full time inside your product, points to a platform that keeps contracts and documents together, or to a Contractor of Record. Classification, tax and IP in detail are in our hiring guide.
Euro (EUR) since 1 January 1999; Ireland is in the euro area and SEPA
Contractor's usual legal form
Sole trader registered with Revenue for self-assessment, or the contractor's own limited company (corporation tax 12.5% on trading income)
Contractor's tax
Income tax 20% / 40% (standard band €44,000 for a single person), USC 0.5–8% plus 3% on self-employed income over €100,000, Class S PRSI 4.2% (4.35% from 1 October 2026)
Working payout rails
SEPA credit transfer and SEPA Instant in EUR, SWIFT for USD and other currencies, Wise, payout platforms
FX / currency control
None; euro-area banks run a Verification of Payee name check on every SEPA payment since October 2025
Contractor's VAT
23% standard rate; registration above €42,500 of turnover for services; no Irish VAT on B2B services to a business abroad
What the contractor needs to receive money
Revenue tax registration, a EUR IBAN in their own or their company's name, and an intra-EU VAT number if an EU business client needs reverse charge
Documents the payer should keep
Services contract with a signed IP assignment, invoices, proof of payment, your five-step status analysis, Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E for US payers
How to choose: four questions for paying contractors in Ireland
Sending euros to an Irish IBAN is routine. The choice turns on your currency, your VAT position, the monthly amount and Ireland’s status test.
1. Do you pay from euros in an EU bank, or from another currency?
From a euro account in the euro area, pay by SEPA. A standard SEPA credit transfer must reach the contractor’s bank by the end of the next business day (EBA, PSD2 Article 83, checked 2026-09-29). Since 9 October 2025 every euro-area bank must also be able to send instant payments (ECB, checked 2026-09-29), which in Ireland arrive within 10 seconds, 24 hours a day (BPFI, checked 2026-09-29).
From USD or GBP, the question is who converts and who pays the receiving fee. AIB charges nothing to receive a euro payment from the SEPA zone, but €6.35 for an incoming SWIFT payment over €127, and non-euro amounts are converted at variable exchange rates (AIB schedule, effective 1 July 2026, checked 2026-09-29). Wise quoted 3.44 USD to deliver 1,000 USD as euros from a Wise balance (wise.com, checked 2026-09-29).
If you hold euros in the EU: SEPA from your own bank, or any platform that pays to an IBAN. If you hold dollars: a transfer service or platform that converts at a disclosed rate and pays euros as a local transfer.
2. Is your company a business in another EU country?
An Irish contractor charges no Irish VAT to a business abroad, in or outside the EU, because B2B services are supplied where the customer is established (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). For a client in another EU state, Revenue tells the contractor to confirm the client’s VAT number, print it on the invoice, mark the invoice reverse charge and report the supply on a VIES return (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29).
Since 17 June 2019 Ireland has issued either a domestic-only VAT registration, which makes no VIES returns, or an intra-EU one (VIES Traders Manual, checked 2026-09-29). A contractor registered domestic-only applies for an intra-EU registration before billing you under reverse charge.
If you are an EU business: ask for the contractor’s intra-EU number before the first payment and check it in VIES. If you are outside the EU: an invoice without VAT is normal; the contractor keeps proof that you are a business.
3. How much do you pay each contractor a month?
At 3% per payout, a percentage fee equals a $29 monthly seat at about $967 a month and a $40 seat at about $1,333. A Contractor of Record priced at about €149 a month equals 3% at about €4,967. Below those amounts a percentage costs less. A plain SEPA transfer has no per-contractor fee, but the contract, invoices and status file are then yours.
If you pay one contractor a modest amount: SEPA, Wise or a percentage-fee platform. If you pay a standing team on larger invoices: compare seat pricing on your real monthly totals.
4. How does the engagement answer Karshan’s first three questions?
Revenue’s version of the Supreme Court test asks whether pay is exchanged for work, whether the worker must do it personally, and whether you control what, how, when or where it is done. A “no” to any of the three means self-employment, subject to legislation; three “yes” answers send you to a review of all the circumstances (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). Revenue expects evidence of that analysis at engagement and a fresh look as things change (TDM Part 05-01-30, reviewed May 2026, checked 2026-09-29). See also contractor misclassification.
If the contractor sets their own methods, can send a substitute and serves other clients: a transfer rail or a contractor platform. If all three answers lean to yes: 4dev acts as Contractor of Record — the contracting party for each contractor — which reduces reclassification risk. Deel, Native Teams and Rivermate sell Contractor of Record products too; read the liability clause in the contract, not the product name. If the role is plainly a job: an Employer of Record such as Deel, Remote, Multiplier or Oyster employs the person. Compare the field in the contractor payouts rating.
A contractor platform that acts as Contractor of Record: 4dev contracts with each contractor and the client contracts with 4dev, which reduces reclassification risk without removing it. It onboards contractors with automatic KYC, keeps IP assignment and closing documents in one flow, and pays out by bank transfer, card or USDT across 150+ countries on a published fee of 3% or less.
Why it fitsKarshan's fourth question weighs contract terms against actual practice; 4dev generates the contract, closing documents and each payout in one flow, for 3% or less.
Why it fitsReclassification after a Karshan test brings Irish PAYE onto a foreign employer; with Deel as contracting party under its $325-a-month COR, that exposure narrows.
Why it fitsWhere Karshan's three filter questions all point to employment, Remote's EOR ($699 a month) employs on a Remote-owned entity and runs PAYE, USC and PRSI.
A mature, transparent-fee cross-border payments leader: pay up to 1,000 contractors at once via BatchTransfer, send to 160 countries and hold 40 currencies at the mid-market rate with upfront, usage-based fees. Excellent as a contractor-payout rail — but it is not a contractor-management or compliance tool (no contracts, no EOR/COR, no payroll).
7.6/10
★ 4.3 · 294k reviews
Price
From 0.57% (fee varies by currency)
FX
mid-market rate, no markup
Payout speed
96% of payments in under 24h
Documents
Invoices & payment links; no contracts
Coverage
160+ countries
Payout methods
bank transfer, local wallet schemes (e.g. GCash in the Philippines, M-Pesa in Kenya)
Batch runs
yes
Payout API
yes
What stands out
pay up to 1,000 contractors at once via BatchTransfer
send to 160 countries and territories; hold 40 currencies
transparent usage-based pricing 'From 0.57%' at the mid-market rate with no subscription
Not a fit for
companies needing contractor contracts, onboarding or compliance management
buyers needing an Employer of Record or a Contractor of Record
A global employment specialist with EOR in 150+ countries on an owned-entity network, a dedicated Contractor of Record, global payroll and published flat pricing — strong for compliant hiring across many markets with transparent EOR/contractor costs.
8.4/10
★ 4.7 · 2168 reviews
Price
Starting at $400 per month
Payout speed
Same-day payment processing
Documents
Auto invoices + compliant contracts
Contractor onboarding
Activation in 1–2 business days
Coverage
150+ countries
Batch runs
yes
What stands out
EOR live in 150+ countries on an owned-entity network
dedicated Contractor of Record (classification, contracts, tax, payments)
published flat pricing for EOR ($400) and contractors ($40), no minimum headcount
Not a fit for
buyers needing an all-in-one HR/IT/Finance suite beyond global employment
buyers who require published global-payroll list pricing up front
A work-and-payments platform that combines EOR, a dedicated Contractor of Record product, contractor payments and global payroll across 95+ countries, with unusually transparent published 'starts at' pricing for a global-employment vendor.
7.9/10
★ 4.7 · 367 reviews
Price
Starts at $19/per contractor per month
Documents
Local contracts, tax handling
Coverage
95+ countries
Batch runs
yes
What stands out
EOR, Contractor of Record, contractor pay and global payroll on one platform
transparent published 'starts at' pricing ($19-$149/mo) — rare among EOR vendors
dedicated CoR product in which Native Teams is the contracting party for the contractor, which reduces misclassification risk
Not a fit for
buyers needing a named, audited certification set (specific ISO 27001 / SOC 2 type)
Why it fitsKarshan's second question asks whether the work must be done personally; where no substitute is allowed, Native Teams' $99 COR contracts instead of you.
A young but fast-growing global-employment platform (180+ countries) with a real owned-entity core (38 entities), transparent flat pricing and standout human support. Best for SMBs — especially European — that value hands-on support and predictable pricing over deep automation.
7.6/10
★ 4.4 · 391 reviews
Price
From ~€299 per employee/month (varies by country/headcount)
Documents
Compliant contracts + invoice flow
Contractor onboarding
Onboarding in 24–48 hours
Coverage
180+ countries
What stands out
Broad 180+ country reach with a real owned-entity core (38 entities), not pure-partner
Transparent flat pricing; no setup/offboarding fees or annual lock-in
Fast onboarding (~48h standard) and strongly-rated 24/7 human support
Not a fit for
enterprises needing deep HRIS/finance integrations and advanced analytics
Why it fitsRevenue, Social Protection and the WRC each rule on status under one joint code; Rivermate's euro-priced COR, about €149 monthly, signs in your place.
Why it fitsAn Irish copyright assignment binds only once the contractor signs it (section 120); Oyster's contracts can be edited to add one, at $29 per contractor.
One basket for all of them: 10 contractors at $3,000 a month, so $30,000 of payouts a month. A percentage of volume and a per-seat fee cannot be compared any other way.
EUR only; Verification of Payee name check before sending
SEPA Instant (EUR)
The full amount within seconds, 24/7
Within 10 seconds
No more than a standard SEPA transfer at euro-area banks
Payment and e-money institutions must receive instant payments only from 9 Apr 2027
SWIFT wire (USD, GBP, other)
The amount minus any intermediary deductions, converted by the receiving bank if it lands in a EUR account
Depends on the correspondent chain
Sending fee, possible intermediary fees; AIB charges €6.35 to receive over €127
Least predictable amount on arrival
Wise
EUR delivered to the IBAN as a local transfer
Estimate shown per transfer
3.44 USD on 1,000 USD from a Wise balance on the day we checked
Receiving bank applies its usual checks
Payout platform or Contractor of Record
EUR to the contractor’s IBAN, or a platform balance
Per platform
See the cards above
KYC on payer and contractor before the first payout
Sources: SEPA timing from PSD2 Article 83 and the full-amount rule from Article 81 (EBA); instant-payment deadlines and equal pricing from the ECB; the 10-second window and name check from BPFI; receiving fees from the AIB schedule effective 1 July 2026; the Wise quote from wise.com (all checked 2026-09-29).
What the Irish contractor needs to get paid
Irish contractors work as a sole trader or through their own limited company. A new sole trader must register for tax with Revenue, online through eRegistration (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29), and then files a Form 11 self-assessment return each year; the 2025 return is due on 31 October 2026, or 18 November 2026 when paid and filed through ROS (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). A limited company pays corporation tax of 12.5% on trading income (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29) and is paid into an account in its own name.
VAT registration becomes obligatory once turnover passes €42,500 for a supplier of services (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). A contractor who invoices EU businesses under reverse charge needs an intra-EU registration rather than a domestic-only one.
To receive money the contractor needs a EUR IBAN in their own or their company’s name. An EU payer cannot insist on an Irish account: the SEPA Regulation forbids payers from specifying the member state where a reachable account sits (Regulation 260/2012, Article 9, checked 2026-09-29). Each period the contractor sends an invoice, with your VAT number and a reverse-charge note if you are an EU business.
Status, tax rates and IP assignment are covered in our hiring guide.
Documents and tax on your side
VAT. B2B services are supplied where the customer is established, so the invoice shows no Irish VAT (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). EU payers self-account at home and keep a VIES check of the contractor’s number; the standard Irish rate the contractor would otherwise charge is 23% (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29).
Withholding. A foreign private client pays the invoice gross. Ireland’s two contractor withholding taxes do not reach it: RCT applies to principal contractors in construction, forestry and meat processing (revenue.ie), and PSWT at 20% is deducted by accountable persons, the state and semi-state bodies listed in Schedule 13 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (revenue.ie, both checked 2026-09-29).
Status file. Revenue expects a business to keep evidence of how it applied the five-question Karshan framework when a worker is engaged, and to review it as the relationship changes (TDM Part 05-01-30, reviewed May 2026, checked 2026-09-29).
US payers. Collect Form W-8BEN from a sole trader, W-8BEN-E from a limited company. Personal service income is sourced where the work is performed (irs.gov, checked 2026-09-29), and foreign-source income needs no Form 1042-S (irs.gov, checked 2026-09-29); no Form 1099-NEC either. The US–Ireland treaty matters only if the contractor works in the US, and then under Article 14 only through a fixed base regularly available there (irs.gov, checked 2026-09-29).
What to keep, per contractor:
The signed services contract with scope, rate, currency and a signed IP assignment.
Each invoice, with your VAT number and the reverse-charge note for EU payers.
Proof of payment matching each invoice.
The five-step status analysis, dated.
W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E (US payers) or the VIES check (EU payers).
On a platform or Contractor of Record model, you keep the platform’s invoice; the platform holds the contractor’s contract.
Where payments to Ireland break
A USD wire lands short. A SWIFT payment into a euro account at AIB costs the contractor €6.35 above €127, is converted at a variable rate, and may already carry foreign or agent bank deductions (AIB, checked 2026-09-29). Pay euros against a euro invoice.
A name mismatch. Before every SEPA and SEPA Instant payment, the payer’s bank checks the name against the receiving account and reports a match, close match or no match (BPFI, checked 2026-09-29). A limited company is paid under its registered name; record it exactly.
An instant payment that is not instant. Payment and e-money institutions have until 9 April 2027 to receive SEPA Instant (ECB, checked 2026-09-29), so a contractor’s fintech account may still take the standard next-day route.
A domestic-only VAT number. Domestic-only registrations make no VIES returns (VIES Traders Manual, checked 2026-09-29), which leaves an EU payer without the intra-EU number its reverse-charge treatment relies on. Check the number in VIES before the first invoice.
The engagement is reclassified. If a Karshan review finds employment, the business must operate PAYE (revenue.ie), and a non-Irish employment exercised wholly in Ireland falls entirely within the PAYE system (TDM Part 42-04-65, para. 3.2, both checked 2026-09-29). Employer PRSI on weekly pay above €552 is 11.25%, rising to 11.40% on 1 October 2026 (gov.ie, checked 2026-09-29).
The contractor is in Northern Ireland. That is the UK: sterling accounts, HMRC and IR35, not Revenue. Services to VAT-registered traders in Northern Ireland have not been reported on Irish VIES returns since 1 January 2021 (VIES Traders Manual). See paying contractors in the UK.
Frequently asked questions
What's the cheapest way to pay a contractor in Ireland?
From a euro account at an EU bank, a SEPA transfer: AIB, for example, charges nothing to receive a euro payment from the SEPA zone, against €6.35 for an incoming SWIFT payment over €127 (AIB schedule effective 1 July 2026, checked 2026-09-29). Paying from dollars, Wise quoted 3.44 USD to deliver 1,000 USD as euros from a Wise balance, or 5.47 USD funded by direct debit (wise.com, checked 2026-09-29). A 3% platform fee on a €3,000 invoice is €90.
Can I pay a contractor in Ireland in USD?
Yes. Ireland has no currency control, so a USD SWIFT wire is legal, but Irish contractors invoice and pay tax in euros, and most accounts are in euros. The receiving bank then converts: AIB applies variable exchange rates on non-euro payments on top of its €6.35 charge for incoming SWIFT payments over €127, and foreign or agent bank charges may be deducted first (AIB, checked 2026-09-29). Converting on your side and paying EUR avoids both.
Do I need to withhold tax when paying a contractor in Ireland?
Not as a foreign private company. A self-employed contractor pays income tax at 20% and 40%, USC and Class S PRSI of 4.2% (4.35% from 1 October 2026) through self-assessment (revenue.ie; gov.ie, checked 2026-09-29). Ireland's two withholding regimes do not reach a foreign software client: RCT covers construction, forestry and meat processing, and PSWT is deducted by listed public bodies (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). US payers collect Form W-8BEN.
Will an Irish contractor charge my company VAT?
No, for a B2B service. The place of supply is where the business customer is established, inside or outside the EU, so the Irish supplier charges no Irish VAT (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). For an EU business, Revenue tells the contractor to put your VAT number on the invoice, mark it reverse charge and report it on a VIES return; for a client outside the EU, the contractor keeps proof that you are a business.
Is my Irish contractor an employee after the Domino's Pizza judgment?
Only if the facts say so. In Revenue v Karshan (Domino's Pizza), decided on 20 October 2023, the Supreme Court set five questions: pay for work, personal service, control, the full circumstances, and any overriding legislation (revenue.ie, checked 2026-09-29). If any of the first three is answered no, there is no employment. Revenue expects businesses to keep evidence of that analysis from the start of the engagement and to review it as the relationship changes.
How fast does a payment to an Irish bank account arrive?
A SEPA Instant payment lands within 10 seconds, at any hour, and since 9 October 2025 every euro-area bank must offer to send one (ECB, checked 2026-09-29). A standard SEPA transfer must reach the payee's bank by the end of the next business day (PSD2 Article 83, EBA). Payment and e-money institutions have until 9 April 2027 to receive instant payments, so a fintech account may still get the standard transfer.
What is Verification of Payee and why does my payment to Ireland show a name mismatch?
Since October 2025 euro-area banks compare the name you enter with the name on the receiving account before every SEPA and SEPA Instant payment, and return a match, close match or no match; you then proceed, correct or cancel (BPFI, checked 2026-09-29). An Irish limited company's account is in the company's name, not the contractor's, so pay it under the registered name.
Does the US–Ireland tax treaty matter when I pay an Irish contractor?
Only if the contractor works in the US. The treaty, signed in Dublin on 28 July 1997 and generally effective from 1 January 1998, taxes independent services only in the country of residence unless the person has a fixed base regularly available in the other country; unlike some US treaties, Article 14 has no 183-day test (irs.gov, checked 2026-09-29). For work done in Ireland, US source rules already make the income foreign-source.
Where to go next
These platforms head to head
Paying contractors elsewhere
Sources
The vendor pages every fact came from, with the date each was checked.
8 platforms tracked in this category. Every fact in the entries above comes from the vendor's own pages — each carries a footnote with the source and the date we checked it, and where a vendor publishes nothing we leave the field out rather than guess. Scores are ours and are not for sale. Full methodology · Report an error
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