Informal employment in Ireland
Ireland: Informal employment was 86.47 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Informal employment in Ireland, 2007–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
The most recent figure for informal employment in Ireland is 86.47, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 12.6% on the previous year and up 26.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, informal employment in Ireland peaked at 183.6 in 2007 and was at its lowest, 24.8, in 2020.
That places Ireland 64th out of 81 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 19 years of available data.
Informal employment in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 183.6 | — |
| 2008 | 161.54 | -12.0% |
| 2009 | 121.16 | -25.0% |
| 2010 | 168.41 | +39.0% |
| 2011 | 105.86 | -37.1% |
| 2012 | 57.27 | -45.9% |
| 2013 | 84.61 | +47.8% |
| 2014 | 104.92 | +24.0% |
| 2015 | 68.54 | -34.7% |
| 2016 | 66.06 | -3.6% |
| 2017 | 67.69 | +2.5% |
| 2018 | 72.6 | +7.3% |
| 2019 | 30.58 | -57.9% |
| 2020 | 24.8 | -18.9% |
| 2021 | 43.07 | +73.6% |
| 2022 | 73.88 | +71.5% |
| 2023 | 76.51 | +3.6% |
| 2024 | 98.94 | +29.3% |
| 2025 | 86.47 | -12.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 155.43 | 121.16 | 183.6 | 3 |
| 2010s | 82.66 | 30.58 | 168.41 | 10 |
| 2020s | 67.28 | 24.8 | 98.94 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More work & labour data for Ireland
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.4488 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.4574 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.4405 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.23 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.9335 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 4,354 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 1,447 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 2,638 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 2,649 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 5,286 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is informal employment in Ireland?
- Informal employment in Ireland was 86.47 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest informal employment recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 183.6 in 2007.
- What is the lowest informal employment recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 24.8 in 2020.
- How does Ireland rank for informal employment?
- Ireland ranks 64th out of 81 countries with data for 2025.
- Is informal employment rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 26.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Informal employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. This harmonized series for informal employment is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. Data disaggregated by occupation are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Data may have been regrouped from the national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCO. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.