The State gives funding to qualified political parties under the Electoral Act, and to party leaders and independent members of the Oireachtas for their activities under the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Activities)(Amendment) Act 2014.

Anyone who gets funding must send details of how it was spent to the Standards Commission by 31 March each year. These reports are published annually.

To qualify for a payment under the Electoral Act, the party’s candidate must have received at least 2 percent of the total first-preference votes at the most recent general election.

For a party to qualify for the parliamentary activities allowance, it must have at least one member elected to the Dáil, or elected or nominated to the Seanad. The size of the allowance depends on the number of members a party has in the Oireachtas. Independent members of the Oireachtas also qualify for the allowance.

The following reports are available: