Photo Credit: Danik Prihodko
Ireland’s Basic Income for the Arts scheme will provide 2,000 professional artists with €1,413.21 monthly (€325 weekly) for three years to offer financial stability. Following a pilot, the new funding round builds on efforts to financially support creative workers.
According to Mixmag, the Irish government has secured €34.4 million in funding for the scheme, with the first notifications to successful applicants beginning in October 2026. The programme attracted just over 10,000 applications, meaning only a portion of those who applied will receive support.
Payments are backdated to September 2026 and will be distributed by year-end. Ireland’s Department of Culture, Communications and Sport began staged notifications on 15 October following a May application deadline with over 10,000 applicants. Due to the 2,000-place cap, eligible candidates were chosen via anonymised random selection, followed by verification.
This round expands on Ireland’s 2022 Basic Income for the Arts pilot. Following its success, the government approved a recurring scheme in February 2026 operating in three-year cycles. Research supported the decision, with an economic assessment reported by RTÉ showing that every €1 invested generated an estimated €1.39 in social returns by offering artists financial security. Recipients of the 2026–2029 scheme will receive payments for three years but cannot apply for the immediate next cycle.
