EIGHT OUTGOING senators are entitled to more than €250,000 in annual pension entitlements between them, despite being below the average national retirement age of 65.
Although a rule change from April 1st, 2004, means that new Oireachtas members do not receive pension benefits until they reach 65, those who were elected before that and those who served in a public service body prior to April 2004 and served as a public servant up until 26 weeks prior to their election, can receive a full pension from the age of 50.
Although former members’ annual pensions are taxable, pension lump sums are not.
Senators who have not reached 50 are also entitled to claim a reduced pension lump sum and pension “may be paid at any time between 45 and 49 years of age”, according to the Oireachtas guidelines. The only outgoing senator to fall into this category is Dan Boyle, who at 48 can opt to do so.
Both former members who have reached retirement age and those who have not are entitled to a termination lump sum, equivalent to two months’ salary which is generally non-taxable. Thereafter, a former member receives monthly taxable termination payments dependent on service. After retirement age a former member may decide to opt to give up their termination payments and switch to their pension payments if it is more beneficial to do so.
Former Oireachtas members who served as a TD and senator are entitled to convert their prior Seanad service at a TD’s pension scale which is higher than that of senators. Any former senators who avail of this higher rate must pay off any difference in personal pension contributions in order to qualify for the higher entitlement.
For example, a senator with five years’ service on entrance into the Dáil who then spends 15 years as a TD can convert the first five years’ service of the higher TD salary for the purposes of their pension calculations. However, a member who spent the first five years as a senator, the next 10 years as TD and the next five years as senator again can only convert the first five years to a TD pension scale and not the latter.