Niamh and John are in their 30s and live in Cork with their child.
John works in the IT sector and earns an annual salary of €47,000. He makes pension / AVC contributions of 340 per month.
John's employer pays his annual health insurance and also his gym subscription.
The total annual value of his benefits is 1,800. Niamh works in the office of an insurance broker and earns 24,000 per annum. As their childcare costs 600 per month, Niamh is considering giving up her job to remain at home.
Both John and Niamh hope that the Minister will increase the standard rate band to take them out of the high (42 per cent) tax bracket.
John has heard rumours that the PRSI ceiling applicable to employees is to increase by approximately 2,200. Their main hope is that they get some form of tax relief for their childcare costs.
