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Retained firefighter pay in Ireland

Retained firefighting is not a salaried job and cannot be compared to one. You are paid an annual retainer for being available, and then paid again for every drill and every call-out you attend. This page has both parts.

The short answer

A retained firefighter's annual retainer starts at €17,021 in year 1 and reaches €20,454 from year 8 onward. A Retained Sub Officer or Driver Mechanic runs from €22,039 to €25,390, and a Retained Station Officer from €26,601 to €31,028. On top of the retainer, attendance is paid separately: €52.60 for the first hour of a standard call-out and €105.20 for the first hour at premium times.

Retainer, firefighter in year 1
€17,021
about €1,405 a month take-home
Retainer, station officer at 8+ years
€31,028
about €2,239 a month take-home

Take-home is for a single person with standard credits, after income tax, USC, PRSI and ASC, and before any allowance or overtime.

What is not published, and why this page stops where it does

The retainer figures below are exactly what Circular EL 04/2026 publishes, but they are not a salary and this page does not present them as one. Total earnings depend entirely on how many drills and call-outs you attend in a year, which varies enormously between stations, so no honest figure exists for what a retained firefighter earns overall. For the same reason this grade is deliberately kept out of the comparison tables elsewhere on this site, where the columns are headed "starts on" and "ceiling" and would imply something untrue. The circular also lists Community Fire Safety payments, which we have not reproduced because the figures as printed are not unambiguous enough to state with confidence.

What makes up the pay

There are two parts to the money, and they work completely differently. The retainer is fixed and paid for availability. Everything else is paid per hour attended.

ElementWhat the employer states
Retained Firefighter, retainer€17,021 in year 1, €18,043 for years 2 to 4, €19,303 for years 5 to 7, then €20,454 from year 8 until cessation of employment.
Retained Sub Officer / Driver Mechanic, retainer€22,039 for the first 3 years, €23,794 for years 4 to 7, then €25,390 from year 8 until cessation of employment.
Retained Station Officer, retainer€26,601 for the first 3 years, €28,921 for years 4 to 7, then €31,028 from year 8 until cessation of employment.
Basic hourly rate (drill rate)€26.30 an hour.
Standard attendance€52.60 for the first hour, then €26.30 for each subsequent hour.
Premium attendance€105.20 for the first hour, then €52.60 for each subsequent hour.
Attendance at drills€52.60 an hour, the double drill rate.
ASCRetained fire service personnel are on a fast accrual pension scheme, so the Additional Superannuation Contribution exempts only the first €28,750 rather than €34,500. Every Retained Firefighter and Sub Officer retainer point sits below that threshold, so no ASC arises on the retainer. A Retained Station Officer at year 8 on €31,028 does cross it, on the €2,278 above.

Questions people ask most

How much does a retained firefighter earn in Ireland?
There is no single figure, and any site that gives you one is guessing. You receive an annual retainer, from €17,021 in your first year up to €20,454 from year 8, and then you are paid separately for every drill and call-out you attend. Total earnings depend on how busy your station is.
What is the retained firefighter retainer in 2026?
For a Retained Firefighter it is €17,021 in year 1, €18,043 for years 2 to 4, €19,303 for years 5 to 7, and €20,454 from year 8 onward. These are the rates in Circular EL 04/2026, effective 1 June 2026.
How much is a retained firefighter paid per call-out?
€52.60 for the first hour of a standard attendance and €26.30 for each hour after that. At premium times the first hour is €105.20 and subsequent hours are €52.60. Attendance at drills is paid at €52.60 an hour, the double drill rate.
How much does a retained station officer earn?
The Retained Station Officer retainer is €26,601 for the first three years, €28,921 for years 4 to 7, and €31,028 from year 8. A Retained Sub Officer or Driver Mechanic sits between firefighter and station officer, from €22,039 to €25,390.
How does the retained firefighter pay scale progress?
Not one point a year, which is unusual. A Retained Firefighter has four retainer points but they last different lengths: point 1 covers only year 1, point 2 covers three years, point 3 covers three years, and point 4 applies from year 8 until you leave. The Sub Officer and Station Officer scales have three points each, covering the first three years, years 4 to 7, and year 8 onward.
Why is retained firefighter pay not in your comparison tables?
Because it is not a salary and putting it in a column headed "starts on" beside a nurse or a teacher would tell you something untrue. The retainer is paid for availability, not for work done, and actual earnings depend on call-out volume at your station. Comparing €17,021 to a salaried grade would understate the job badly, and comparing an estimated total would be inventing a number.
Do retained firefighters pay ASC?
On most retainers, no. Retained fire service personnel are on a fast accrual scheme where the Additional Superannuation Contribution exempts the first €28,750 of pensionable pay. Every Retained Firefighter and Sub Officer retainer point sits below that, so no ASC arises. The one exception is a Retained Station Officer from year 8, whose retainer of €31,028 crosses the threshold, giving ASC on the €2,278 above it.
Is retained firefighter pay the same in every county?
Yes for the retainer and the attendance rates, which are national and set by circular. What differs enormously between stations is how many call-outs there are, and that is what determines annual earnings.
What about full-time firefighters?
Full-time firefighters in the city fire services, including Dublin Fire Brigade, are on a different structure that is not set out in the local government pay circular. We have not found an accessible published scale for it, so we do not have a page for it rather than putting up estimates.
When do these rates increase next?
These come from the Public Service Agreement 2024-2026, which applied a 1% increase on 1 June 2026 across local authority grades. That agreement is in its final year, so the next rates depend on the agreement that succeeds it. We update this page when a new circular is published.

Where these figures come from

Every euro figure on this page is taken from the sources below. Last checked 2026-08-14.

More public sector pay:

All public sector pay scales →