CP172 - Consultation on Industry Funding Levy Proposals
Overview
Description
Central Bank of Ireland is permitted under law to charge regulated financial firms an annual Industry Funding Levy. This Levy funds the costs associated with regulating Ireland’s financial sector as we seek to ensure that the financial system works in the best interests of consumers and the wider economy.
In 2025 we initiated a review of our Levy strategy to consider whether the approach we adopt remains appropriate. As part of this review, we spoke to industry representatives and other stakeholders about our current approach, and we also looked at how some other countries handle industry funding levies.
Following this review, we are proposing to make changes to the methodologies that apply to some industry categories.
These changes concern how the Levy is distributed across firms in an industry category, not how much is collected from the category.
During the review, we also looked at other aspects of how we fund our regulatory work. You can find our conclusions and next steps in section 5 of our consultation paper.
Industry Categories Affected
We are proposing changes for those industry categories where the Levy is currently determined by a firm’s PRISM Impact categorisation. This covers insurance undertakings, investment firms and investment fund service providers.
We are also proposing changes for retail credit firms and credit servicing firms, and for the payment institutions and e-money institutions industry category.
Rationale for the Proposed Changes
Section 2 of the consultation paper sets out the rationale for the proposed changes, which include:
- Improved consistency in how the Levy is determined across industry categories
- Addressing the “cliff edges” that currently arise with PRISM Impact-based scales, which can result in a substantial increase or decrease in the Levy a firm pays from one year to the next should their Impact category change
- More proportionate contributions
- More transparency for firms
- Alignment with the evolution of the Central Bank’s approach to regulation and supervision.
Consultation Process
We would like to hear stakeholder’s views on the proposed changes. The questions set out in the paper are:
- Do you agree with the proposed approaches? If not, please state what you find objectionable, propose any worked-out alternatives and explain in what respect you believe they would be preferable and why.
- Are there any other considerations that you think should be taken into account and, if so, why?
We also welcome views on our proposed enhancements to the annual Levy process, as outlined in section 5.
Submissions to this consultation can be submitted to levyconsultation@centralbank.ie, or by post (submitted to Industry Funding Levy Consultation 2026, Central Bank of Ireland, PO Box 559, Dublin 1). Submissions should be clearly titled “Consultation on Industry Funding Levy Proposals”.
The consultation closing date is 8 January 2027.
For Further Information
If you have any questions, please send them to levyconsultation@centralbank.ie with “Consultation Paper 172” in the subject line. Our “Industry Funding Levy Consultation – FAQ” page provides further information and will be updated periodically.
CP Number :
CP172
Date :
25 September 2026
Closing Date :
08 January 2027
Consultation Paper Document
CP172 - Consultation on Industry Funding Levy Proposals | pdf 1964 KB