The Workings
This page sets out the methodology behind our economic impact figures – the data sources, assumptions, and calculations. For our policy recommendations, see the policy page.
Impact Calculator
Remote employment is bound to tax jurisdiction, not location. Jobs land in communities without companies building anything there.
The Focus of the Strategy
Land the Job
Remote work exists on a spectrum. See what happens when you land each type in Ireland.
Bound to nothing. Worker moves between jurisdictions. No fixed tax anchor.
Bound to tax jurisdiction. Job anchors where the worker is tax resident. Stays put.
Bound to physical location. Worker must be within commuting distance of office.
1. Salary Baseline
What does the average remote worker earn?
We use €62,850 – the average salary for remote workers in Ireland according to the WDC 2023 Remote Working Survey.
This figure includes all remote arrangements (office-first hybrid through fully remote). Our target market – EMEA remote-first roles at international companies – likely commands equal or higher salaries due to competition for talent across multiple countries.
For comparison, the average salary in Ireland’s five lowest-income counties (Donegal, Monaghan, Longford, Kerry, Wexford) is €42,874 (CSO data). This baseline is used for calculating GDP uplift.
2. Estimating the Market
How many remote jobs are available?
We estimate approximately 100,000 remote jobs are open across the EU at any given time.
This is based on LinkedIn data, allowing for the fact that LinkedIn doesn’t capture all remote jobs available, offset by roles listed as remote that are actually restricted in some form. The figure fluctuates between roughly 80,000 and 120,000 depending on market conditions.
There is no official tracking of remote job availability – which is part of the case for establishing a national target that would create proper measurement infrastructure.
3. Tax Calculation
Single person, PAYE employee, 2025 rates. Based on €62,850 salary.
Note on Employer PRSI: Foreign companies hiring in Ireland through an Employer of Record pay Employer PRSI. The EOR is the legal employer, so Ireland captures the full tax contribution regardless of where the company is headquartered.
Full employment adjustment: At full employment, remote jobs replace existing lower-paid roles. Tax on a €42,874 job = €12,152. The incremental tax gain per remote job is therefore €23,543 – €12,152 = €11,391.
4. GDP Contribution
How remote jobs increase Ireland’s economic output
The GDP figure represents the salary uplift when a lower-paid local job is converted to a higher-paid remote job:
This approach is appropriate at full employment, where remote jobs represent salary conversion and uplift rather than net new employment. Ireland is currently at or near full employment.
Net new jobs scenario: If unemployment rises, remote jobs could represent genuinely new employment. In that case, the full salary (€62,850) counts as GDP contribution, not just the uplift.
5. Local Economic Activity
How remote workers boost their local economies
Based on CSO Household Budget Survey data, approximately 65% of household expenditure goes to local, non-tradeable services: housing, food, utilities, transport, childcare, health, and personal services.
This incremental local spending is what drives the local jobs multiplier (see below).
6. Local Jobs Multiplier
How remote jobs sustain local service employment
Each remote job sustains approximately 0.7 local service-sector jobs through increased household spending. In practical terms:
- 100 remote jobs sustain ~70 local jobs
- 1,000 remote jobs sustain ~700 local jobs
- 5,000 remote jobs sustain ~3,500 local jobs
These jobs arise in childcare, care services, retail, hospitality, maintenance, and personal services – the everyday economy of local communities.
Source: IBEC research on IDA job multipliers found each IDA-supported job generates 1.8–3.8 additional local jobs through household income, local consumption, and demand for non-tradeable services. We apply a conservative 0.7 adjustment because remote workers differ from IDA investments – we capture only the household spending channel, excluding firm procurement, capital investment, and clustering effects.
Important: The local jobs sustained are an alternative way of expressing the economic impact – they represent the same underlying value as the GDP and local spend figures, not an additional layer on top. The increased local spending is what pays for these jobs.