Guidance on the Industry Funding Levy  

A comprehensive discussion of the Industry Funding Levy can be found in the Funding Strategy and Guide to Industry Funding Regulations which is published each year.

Previous Guides are available for download here:

Frequently Asked Questions on the Industry Funding Levy  

These FAQs relate to the Industry Funding Levy. Please note that the explanation of terms in italics can be found in the glossary at the end of this page.

What is the Industry Funding Levy?

Pursuant to Section 32D of the Central Bank Act, 1942 (as amended) the Commission of the Central Bank may, with the approval of the Minister for Finance, make regulations requiring regulated entities to pay a levy to the Central Bank.

The objective of these Regulations is to raise a proportion of the cost of financial regulation activities directly from the regulated entities it regulates. The balance is funded by the Central Bank by means of a subvention.

The target recovery rates are as follows:

For further details please see the Funding Strategy and Guide to the 2024 Industry Funding Regulations.

Why am I required to pay the Industry Funding Levy?

All regulated entities which hold an authorisation from the Central Bank for part or all of 2023 will be required to contribute towards the cost of financial regulation activities by paying the proportion of the 2023 Industry Funding levy attributable to the proportion of the year in respect of which they held that authorisation.    

How much do I have to pay?

The 2023 levy for each industry funding category is set out in the Funding Strategy and Guide to the 2024 Industry Funding Regulations.  Using this Guide, each firm will be able to calculate the amount of its 2022 Industry Funding levy. Please also see section 'How is the levy calculated?'

An entity that holds an authorisation in more than one category must pay the levy for each category.  For example, a credit union (Category F) may also hold an authorisation as a multi-agency intermediary (Category C) in which case it will be required to pay the appropriate levy in respect of both categories.

In which Industry Funding Category am I included?

The industry funding category in which a firm is included depends upon the financial activities in respect of which it holds an authorisation from the Central Bank. A full list of industry funding categories is set out in the Levying Process section as well as in the Funding Strategy and Guide to the 2024 Industry Funding Regulations.

How is the levy calculated?

Under the current levy calculation process, the amount of the levy payable by a regulated entity will be established with reference to                    

• The type of authorisation that the firm holds (since this will position the firm in the relevant funding category);
• The proportion of the year in respect of which it held that authorisation (will decide whether a full or pro-rate levy will apply;
• Recovery rate (see above);
• The relevant metrics;
• Total Assets and Total Risk Weighted Exposure amounts (credit institutions);
• Impact category for Insurance Undertakings, Investment Firms, Fund Service Providers;
• Income (Retail Intermediaries and Debt Management Companies, High Cost Credit Providers);
• Total Assets (Credit Unions);
• Flat rate levy for category (Bureaux de Change, Approved Professional Bodies, Retail Credit and Credit Servicing Firms);
• No of sub-funds (Funds); and
• Total Value of Transactions Processed (Payment & E-Money Institutions).

Explanations of the terms PRISM and impact categorisation are set out below.

Details of the 2023 levy rates can be found in the Funding Strategy and Guide to the 2024 Industry Funding Regulations.

I was authorised for the first time in 2023.  Am I required to pay the Industry Funding Levy?

Each regulated entity which held an authorisation from the Central Bank for part or all of the year will be liable to a levy for the portion of the year in respect of which it held this authorisation. It follows that regulated entities newly authorised will be liable to a levy covering the period from date of authorisation to 31 December 2023.

My authorisation was revoked in 2023.  Do I have to pay the levy?

Each regulated entity which held an authorisation from the Central Bank for part, or all, of the year will be liable to a levy for the portion of the year in respect of which it held this authorisation. It follows that regulated entities whose authorisation was revoked in 2023 were liable to a levy covering the period from 1 January to the date on which the authorisation was revoked. Regulated entities whose authorisation is revoked in 2024 will be levied at the time of revocation.

I have not received a Funding Levy invoice. How do I get one?

Commencing this year, the Central Bank has moved to issuing levy notices by email with respect to the Levy 2023 process. To facilitate this change we required the assistance of regulated entities in providing us with email details for invoicing purposes. 

Regulated entities who have not received an Industry Funding Levy are still liable to the relevant levy. Please e-mail us at [email protected] if you are still authorised but have not received your levy invoice.

For future levy payments, any firm that has not yet activated its Central Bank Portal account, should go to the Central Bank’s Portal Webpage to register. If any difficulties are encountered in registering or accessing a portal account please contact [email protected].

How can I pay my Industry Funding Levy?

Regulated entities can pay their levy by

• Direct Debit; or
• Electronic Funds Transfer

View more information on payment options.

Why should I complete the direct debit mandate? I do not feel comfortable signing a direct debit without knowing how much I have to pay?

Payment by direct debit is the most efficient means of collecting the levy from the large number of firms regulated by the Central Bank.  It is also a convenient way to pay and ensures that your levy is paid on time. You will receive a levy notice at least 28 days in advance of the payment by direct debit and therefore will know in advance the amount due by your firm in the current levy year.

Payment by direct debit is not currently mandatory and the levy can be paid by EFT.

What do I have to do to pay my Industry Funding Levy by direct debit?

Regulated entities who have previously submitted a direct debit mandate will have their levy collected by way of direct debit no sooner than 35 days after the date the levy notice is issued. Where a valid direct debit mandate exists this will be clearly indicated at the bottom of the levy invoice.

If you have not already submitted a direct debit mandate but wish to pay your annual Industry Funding Levy by direct debit please print and complete a copy of the Direct Debit Mandate.  This mandate must then be signed and returned to the following address:

Billing & Collections
Financial Control Division
Central Bank of Ireland
PO Box 9708
Dublin 1

Do I have a direct debit mandate in place?

Please email us at [email protected] if you want to check whether you have already completed and submitted have a direct debit mandate.

What details do I need to pay my levy by Electronic Funds Transfer? 

To ensure payments are dealt with efficiently, a payment reference must include at least one of the following details: invoice number or account number. Failure to include the required details may result in the payment being returned at the remitter's expense and the levy remaining due.

Payment details are as follows:

If paying by SWIFT, please note the payment reference (invoice number or account number) should be populated in the correct fields on the payment:

     SWIFT Payments:         MT103: Field 70

We kindly request that, where possible, one payment is made per account. 

I want to appeal payment of the 2023 levy. How can I do this?

A regulated entity may appeal the levy amount but must do so no later than 21 days following the date of the levy notice. 

Any such appeals must be in writing and should be accompanied by:

• Supporting documentation;
• Payment or a receipt evidencing payment of that portion of the levy which is not in dispute;
• Where in the reasonable opinion of the Central Bank the obligation of a regulated entity to pay a levy would be likely to make that entity insolvent, or where the regulated entity is a sole trader, or bankrupt, the Central Bank may waive, in full or in part, the obligation of that entity to pay the levy.

The Central Bank may at its discretion waive or reduce a levy in whole or in part in exceptional circumstances.

The Central Bank is required to advise the regulated entity in writing of its decision in respect of the appeal, providing reasons for same and details of any amount outstanding in respect of the disputed amount of the levy the due date applicable for the payment of any outstanding levy amounts.

What happens if a regulated entity fails to pay its levy?

If a financial services provider fails to pay the levy by the required date, the Central Bank may take steps to recover the amount of the levy.  Recovery action may include court proceedings.              

Why have I received a default levy of €3,850?

Our records indicate that your firm has failed to complete an On-Line Regulatory return (ONR).  In such circumstances the firm will be liable to a default levy amounting to €3,850.  The firm is therefore encouraged to complete its ONR as soon as possible as this will facilitate the determination of the appropriate levy amount - which will, in almost all instances, be significantly lower than the amount of the default levy.  This new levy amount will replace the default levy.  Further information on the ONR system and requirements can be found in the Online Reporting Process.   

Is this levy linked to the levies payable to the Investor Compensation Company Limited or the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman?

No. The Industry Funding Levy which is payable to the Central Bank on an annual basis is designed to raise the relevant proportion of the cost attributed to the Central Bank’s financial regulation activities (see above for relevant proportion for individual categories) directly from the regulated entities it regulates.

These questions do not deal with my queries.  What can I do?

Please send an email to [email protected] with any other queries in relation to your funding levy invoice. Any other queries can be directed to [email protected].  

I do not understand some of the terms used in relation to the Levy. What do they mean?

A glossary has been included as Appendix 3 in the Funding Strategy and Guide to the 2024 Industry Funding Regulations.  An explanation of some of the more common terms used has, however, been set out below.

Glossary

Gross Annual Funding Requirement represents the relevant proportion of the cost of financial regulation activities for the year in question which will be funded by industry. For further details please refer to the Funding Strategy and Guide to the 2024 Industry Funding Regulations.

Net Annual Funding Requirement represents the adjustment of the Gross Annual Funding Requirement for prior year balances and other items which have been approved for inclusion in assumptions which underpin the annual levy process.

Impact Category is derived from the Central Bank's Probability Risk Impact System (PRISM) for the 2023 funding year. It reflects the Central Bank's assessment of the potential impact of the failure of a regulated entity on financial stability and consumers.

PRISM (Probability Risk and Impact SysteM) is the name given to the framework that the Central Bank has developed to apply risk based supervision.

Impact metric data means selected items extracted from a regulated entity's most up to date On-Line Return.

On-Line Regulatory Return (ONR) is the regulatory return that must be completed and submitted to the Central Bank by certain types of regulated entities by means of a secure web based system. The amount and type of information that the Central Bank requires to be included in the returns varies between financial sectors. Full details of the sectoral requirements are available in the reporting requirements section of the Financial Regulation Industry Sectors.

High impact firms are large domestic and international financial firms with considerable potential to cause large-scale damage to financial sector stability.

Medium-High impact firms are large firms with considerable potential to cause prudential harm or customer loss. They are, however, not systemically important institutions but firms whose failure (if managed properly) should not derail the financial system or wider economy.

Medium-Low impact firms are typically medium-sized and non-dominant players in their respective industries.

Low impact firms tend to have impact scores lower than 200. These constitute the bulk of the regulated firms operating in Ireland. Failure of individual firms in this category would not cause significant damage to the State or its citizens as a whole.