Ireland
Several countries changed their minimum wage rates on 1 July 2026 including Argentina, Australia, Netherlands and Romania. In the US, there were a number of minimum wage increases.
In Ireland, from 29 June 2026, employees may seek to continue working beyond a contractual retirement age below the state pension age, with employers only able to refuse on objectively justified grounds.
The new entitlement for employees to remain in employment until the age of 66 took effect on 29 June 2026, and the expansion of the insolvency payment scheme took effect on 6 June 2026.
The Insolvency Payments Scheme has been expanded to protect employees owed money by employers that stopped trading without becoming legally insolvent, with further access expected for historical claims from the first quarter of 2027.
Employees with a contractual retirement age below the state pension age of 66 can now notify their employer that they do not wish to retire, and the employer can enforce that retirement age only if it gives a reasoned written reply and can objectively justify doing so.
The table has been updated to reflect key 2026 developments in statutory annual leave across jurisdictions.
Updated to include additional information on temporary employment agency work in Argentina and Netherlands.
In May 2026, Turkey doubled the length of paternity leave from five to 10 days. In France, for children born on or after 1 January 2026, each parent (including mothers) is entitled to two months of supplementary birth leave, available from 1 July 2026.
In Turkey, maternity leave was extended from 16 to 24 weeks from 1 May 2026. In France, for children born on or after 1 January 2026, each parent (including mothers) is entitled to two months of supplementary birth leave, available from 1 July 2026.
A new “benefits in kind” section explains how these benefits are treated for tax purposes, setting out the general principle that non-cash employment benefits may be taxable, subject to exceptions and thresholds.
HR practices and employment law in Ireland.