# PRSI Refund - Real or Scam?



## SMG

I received an email from a colleague that he received stating that PRSI refunds were available and the text stated is below.  Anyone know if this is actually the case?

Also, any possibility that it could result in finding out that on ehad under paid?!

Thanks
S MG

'... everyone who was working in ROI in the
past 4 years can claim PRSI refund(not tax!). PRSI was counted incorrectly due to some error in the calculator in years 2007-2010. 
It's not being advertised but it's being incorrectly calculated for everyone!! 

The only thing you need to do is to write simple letter with an
application for your refund to below address(include PPS number): 

PRSI Refunds Section,
Department of Social Protection,
Oisin House,
212-213 Pearse Street,
Dublin 2.'


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## ClubMan

Where _PRSI _is overpaid for some reason a refund is indeed possible. I got one myself in respect of personal pension contributions made out of net income a few years back. 

I'm not aware of any issue whereby *everybody* has been overcharged _PRSI _for 2007-2010 and I'd be dubious about such a claim. It should be relatively straightforward to sanity check your _PRSI _deductions using the likes of the calculators at www.taxcalc.eu.


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## z107

PRSI Refunds Section are going to love that.

As a payroll software company we've not heard of anything like this. (I just hope it doesn't generate a load of support for us!)

The only recent thing was the way some software products were calculating PRSI on pension payments could mean some people are due refunds, but only for 2011. (See: [broken link removed])


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## addob

SMG, I recieved this as well - looks like a spam mail as it was exactly the same text and all!!


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## Boyd

The use of exclamation marks immediately points to a scam


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## elcato

> The use of exclamation marks immediately points to a scam


Not to mention questionable grammer. I would be inclined to write _a_ simple letter and to _the_ below address


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## suzie

As stated elsewhere here my myself, I've had pension contribution outside payroll, each year I did a refund, but I just couldnt calculate how they came to the refund figure!! Even when I asked, I never got a straight answer...

S.


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## mandelbrot

username123 said:


> The use of exclamation marks immediately points to a scam


 
Not necessarily.

Who is this scam benefitting? The address quoted is genuinely the address of the PRSI refunds section, and all that the email suggests is that people write to the Dept and request a review of their PRSI contributions. Unless the email goes on to suggest that you should also ask for your refund to be lodged into the account of a Nigerian general, or that if you forward your own bank details to the sender they'll take care of it for you I fail to see where the scope for a scam is...

Having said that, if you consider the simple fact that PRSI is calculated by employers individually on a week by week basis (using whatever means software or manual), it simply isn't feasible that EVERYONE could be due a PRSI refund, as there is no such thing as "the calculator" ( I mean what would that even be, some kind of PRSI deity...?! )

So, a scam? No. A load of nonsense? By and large, Yes.


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## ClubMan

mandelbrot said:


> there is no such thing as "the calculator" ( I mean what would that even be, some kind of PRSI deity...?! )


Or some sort of really boring superhero?


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## elcato

According to google, it's in connection with the health levy and you are entitled to a refund if you earned under 26k in the years mentioned. So looks like not a scam but just a little short on facts.


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## mandelbrot

elcato said:


> According to google, it's in connection with the health levy and you are entitled to a refund if you earned under 26k in the years mentioned. So looks like not a scam but just a little short on facts.


 
Ahhhhhh, yes, sure I've claimed that myself for 2009, it was a welcome few quid! 

It's not quite as straightforward as that forum suggests - you will be entitled to a refund of any Health Levy *YOU HAVE PAID* if you have earned less than 26k in the years in question, *AND *you suffered deduction of Health Levy by being at Class A1 for PRSI at some stage during the year.

You only paid Health Levy in any period where you were earning at Class A1, which was gross pay of over €500 per week (i.e. the weekly equivalent of €26k p.a.). 2 people could have earned (grossed) the exact same amount, but one person would be due a refund and the other wouldn't...:

*Person 1:*
Worked 48 weeks of the year earning €510 per week (and therefore paid PRSI & Levies at *class A1*), and didn't work the rest of the year. They earned €24,480 in total and would have paid 2% health levy on the whole lot. They are entitled to a full refund of all health levy paid (489.60).

*Person 2:*
Worked 52 weeks of the year earning €471 per week (and therefore paid PRSI & Levies at *class AL*). They earned €24,492 in total and would have paid no health levy. They aren't due a refund, as they haven't paid any health levy. But then again, their net pay was about €10 more than the other guy who was paying a tenner a week in extra PRSI...


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## SMG

Thanks all... makes sense.
S


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## NHG

Last year on week 52 in our payroll (sage) anyone who had worked the 52 insurance weeks and were due a refund of the Income Levy (due to short-time) got the refund through the payroll (it stated how much the refund was etc) and anyone who had'nt the full 52 insurance weeks had to write in to claim back the refund - the payslip said exactly how much was due.

Myself and my OH get a PRSI refund every year as we pay our pension privately and not through our wages - our accountant was'nt aware of the refund being due until I read about it somewhere here on askaboutmoney.com.


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