Pre-launch profile
Irish Life PIA: fees, terms and review
Irish Life's position: Stated plan. No verdict until Irish Life publishes full terms — this page tracks what has been said and what is still missing.
Updated 8 October 2026
What Irish Life has said
Irish Life's PIA page is headed 'Personal Investment Account from Irish Life, coming in July 2027' and says advice is provided by Irish Life Financial Services. No fees, minimums, fund range or application process have been published.
Source: Irish Life — Personal Investment Accounts (checked 7 October 2026; page undated)
Stated plan: The firm has publicly stated it plans to offer the account; this does not mean applications are open or terms are published.
Authorisation: Authorised insurance undertaking, Central Bank of Ireland
What to expect from a life company PIA
Irish Life has not published its PIA fund range. Life companies usually build new products from what they already run, so our working expectation is that it will mirror Irish Life's existing unit-linked funds, such as its MAPS risk-rated portfolios and indexed funds.
- The fund choice is likely to look similar to what Irish Life already offers in its savings and investment plans.
- Charges are likely to follow a fund-based model (an annual management charge on each fund) rather than per-trade dealing fees.
- Irish Life already manages investment products sold by PTSB, so it may also sit behind other providers' accounts. Neither firm has confirmed this for the PIA.
Individual shares: very unlikely
Irish Life has not said what can be held. As a life company that runs pooled funds rather than a share-dealing service, it is very unlikely to offer individual shares such as Ryanair or Apple. If picking single shares matters to you, an investment platform is the more likely route.
This section is PIA·IE's reading of how life companies normally operate, not a statement from Irish Life. We will replace it with Irish Life's published terms when they appear.
Existing Irish Life investments and the PIA
Short answer: they stay separate. The Finance Bill lets only new cash into a PIA. Your existing Irish Life policies, funds and pensions cannot be moved into it as they are.
Outside the PIA
Your existing Irish Life plans
- ✕ Can't be moved in as they are
- • Keep their current tax rules
- • Keep their own charges and terms
Inside the PIA
New cash only
- ✓ Money paid in, then invested (s.747L(2)(c))
- ✓ Up to €12,000 a calendar year (s.747H(1))
- ✓ Moves as is only from another PIA (s.747W)
What if…
- I want my existing Irish Life money in a PIA? You would have to cash in the policy and pay the money in, within the €12,000 yearly limit. Cashing in can trigger exit tax on any gain and early-exit charges under your policy's terms.
- I keep my existing plan? Nothing changes for it under section 26. It carries on under its current rules alongside any PIA.
- My pension is with Irish Life? Pensions are a separate regime and are not part of the PIA rules.
- I open a PIA elsewhere and later switch to Irish Life? A PIA-to-PIA transfer is allowed, if Irish Life offers a PIA and accepts transfers in.
Not advice: whether to keep or cash in an existing plan depends on your gains, charges and plans. In the Finance Bill, not yet law. See moving existing investments into a PIA.
Fees and total yearly cost
| Provider / platform fee | Not published yet |
|---|---|
| Fixed account fee | Not published yet |
| Fund ongoing charge | Not published yet |
| Adviser or broker commission | Not published yet |
| Dealing and FX fees | Not published yet |
| Entry, exit and switching charges | Not published yet |
The PIA tax itself — 1% of value above €50,000, nothing up to that amount — is the same at every provider and is shown separately on the cost comparison.
What to check when terms arrive
- Every yearly charge added together, not just the headline platform fee.
- Whether advice or commission is built in, and whether you can opt out.
- Fund charges on the funds you'd actually hold.
- Exit and transfer charges if you later move provider.
In the Finance Bill, not yet law
Common questions
Can I buy individual shares in a Irish Life PIA?
Irish Life has not said what can be held. As a life company that runs pooled funds rather than a share-dealing service, it is very unlikely to offer individual shares such as Ryanair or Apple. If picking single shares matters to you, an investment platform is the more likely route.
What funds will Irish Life's PIA offer?
Not yet published. Our expectation is that it will mirror Irish Life's existing unit-linked funds, such as its MAPS risk-rated portfolios and indexed funds. That is our reading, not a Irish Life statement.
What fees will Irish Life charge on its PIA?
Unconfirmed. Irish Life has not published PIA fees. We will add each cost line, with its source, as soon as it does.
Can I move existing Irish Life investments into a PIA?
No, not as they are. Under section 26 of the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, only cash can be paid into a PIA (s.747L(2)(c)), and investments can only move across as they are from another PIA (s.747W). An existing Irish Life policy, fund or pension stays where it is. To use the PIA, you would pay in new money, up to €12,000 a calendar year. Cashing in an existing policy to fund it is a separate decision that can trigger exit tax and early-exit charges. In the Finance Bill, not yet law.
What will I be able to invest in through Irish Life's PIA?
Unconfirmed. Budget 2027 said shares, bonds, ETFs and other funds may be held, but each provider's range is not yet known.
How is the PIA tax handled with Irish Life?
Under the Finance Bill, providers deduct the 1% charge on value above €50,000 — accounts up to €50,000 pay no PIA tax. Not yet law.
Next: PIA calculator · how fees compound · provider tracker
Run your own numbers
Compare a Personal Investment Account against a deposit account and a standard fund over 10, 20 or 30 years — with real Irish rates.
Open the PIA calculatorInformation only, not financial or tax advice. PIA rules are as written in the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, published 19 October 2026, and are not law until the Bill is signed. Figures cited are from the Department of Finance roadmap, Revenue, Skatteverket, GOV.UK and the IRS.