Single parents will receive double the child tax deductions given to couples from tax year 2026 under new income tax rules that have forced the Tax Department to prepare multiple scenarios for complex family situations.
A single parent will receive €2,000 for their first dependent child, €2,500 for the second and €3,000 for each additional child, compared to €1,000, €1,250 and €1,500, respectively, for couples, according to the Tax Department’s explanatory guide.
The same income limits apply to all families: up to €100,000 for families with one to two children, up to €150,000 for three to four children, and up to €200,000 for five or more children.
The Tax Department prepared the scenarios to handle problems that arise mainly for divorced parents with joint custody whose children do not live with either parent, those who cohabit without a civil partnership agreement but have children from previous marriages, those with civil partnership agreements, and other complex cases.
Single-parent families will also benefit from deductions of up to €2,000 for mortgage interest and rent, as well as deductions for students and green investments in their main residence.
A single-parent family is defined as one where a parent lives with at least one dependent child under the same roof, has custody, and does not have a spouse, civil partner or another person with whom they have common children.
This applies to unmarried parents, widowed or divorced parents, or cases where the other parent has been declared missing by the court. It also includes married parents living alone with a dependent child because the other parent is serving a prison sentence of six months or more.
For example, an unmarried mother with an annual income of €80,000 living with one dependent child who paid €5,000 in mortgage interest would receive €2,000 for the child (doubled as a single parent) plus €2,000 for mortgage interest, totalling €4,000.
Joint custody creates complications. A divorced father living alone with a gross income of €38,000 who has two children living with their mother but has joint custody would receive €1,000 for the first child and €1,250 for the second, totalling €2,250. If he also pays €4,800 annual rent, he receives an additional €2,000 deduction.
However, if that divorced father has joint custody but remarries and his new household income exceeds €100,000, the family loses all deductions despite having children.
The rules also affect cohabiting couples. Partners without a civil partnership agreement who have a common child and annual income of €88,000 are considered a family, with each receiving €1,000 for the child.
But a divorced father earning €37,000 who cohabits with a partner earning €42,000 without having children together is not considered a family. He receives €1,000 for his child from the previous relationship, while she receives nothing because her income exceeds the €40,000 limit for single persons.