Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 section 48

Conditions for receipt

Section 48 sets out the PRSI contribution requirements that must be satisfied to qualify for maternity benefit, with different rules applying to employed contributors and self-employed contributors.

• Employed contributors must have at least 39 qualifying PRSI contributions since first entering insurance, plus satisfy additional recent contribution requirements.
• The additional requirement for employees can be met by having 39 contributions or credits in recent complete tax years, or by having 26 contributions in each of the second last and third last complete tax years.
• Self-employed contributors must have at least 52 qualifying contributions in the second last or third last complete contribution year, or in a subsequent complete year before the claim.
• Contributors who have moved between employment and self-employment may use the contribution conditions from either category to establish entitlement.