HSE consolidated pay scales

The HSE says the rates of pay, allowances and pay-related conditions for its employees are approved by the Department of Health, and these rates are called the consolidated pay scales. Each grade has a scale of points, and you move up one point (an increment) each year. The current edition, effective 1 June 2026, must be read with Department of Health Circular 2/2026 and applies the Public Service Agreement 2024 to 2026 increase of 1% to basic salaries and pay-type allowances. Earlier 2026 and 2025 editions are kept in the HSE's archive. The document also says no unapproved allowances may be paid: allowances such as on-call payments are paid only to the grades and at the rates the scales set out.

The scales also bind voluntary hospitals funded by the HSE. The document says Section 38 providers must not pay above the consolidated scales for approved grades.

Each line gives a grade code, the grade title, the date the rates apply from, the number of points and the annual salary at each point. Long service increments (LSIs) appear at the end of some scales: the first is paid after 3 years on the maximum, the second after 3 more years and the third after 3 more. Some rates from the 1 June 2026 edition:

• Staff nurse (and registered midwife): €38,166 rising to €56,592, including long service increments.
• Staff nurse, general (awaiting registration) and staff nurse (adaptation placement): a single rate of €33,370.
• Physiotherapist: €45,514 rising to €65,068.
• Senior house officer: €55,292 to €75,623.
• Registrar: €70,276 to €82,756.

These are basic annual salaries before allowances, premium pay and deductions.

DETE sets a general minimum salary of €40,904 for a Critical Skills Employment Permit, but says that where a role is in the public sector and covered by a public sector pay agreement, including Section 38 employers, the threshold is the rate of pay under that agreement. That is why a staff nurse starting below €40,904 on the HSE scale can still qualify.

The scale shows the range, not your personal point. Which point you start on depends on your grade and on how your employer applies the rules on credit for previous experience. Ask the HR department in writing how your experience abroad will be counted before you accept an offer, and check the grade code on your contract against the scale.

• Out-of-date tables. Scales change several times a year, so always check the current edition on the HSE pay scales page.
• Gross versus net. Tax, USC, PRSI and pension come off the scale figure. Try our HSE take-home pay calculator.
• Private employers. Private hospitals and nursing homes are not bound by these scales.

Compare countries in our nurse salary guide.