THE DEPARTMENT OF Social Protection has handed back more than €10million to taxpayers after collecting a health levy they were not liable for.
Some 26,000 people were refunded an average of €385 each after the contribution was collected in the three years up to 2010. It’s not known how many refund applications are left to process.
In a statement, the Department said it was “difficult to be precise” about how many individuals would be eligible for a refund.
The confusion arose because the levy was collected from people who earned more than €500 in any week in 2008, 2009 or 2010.
However, if they were paid less than €26,000 total that year, they could claim a refund of the health contribution.
In the statement, the Department said the money was “properly deducted” in the first instance, but some people were due a refund.
The system has now been changed, with the health contribution folded into the Universal Social Charge.
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