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Editor’s note: First published August 2022 | Refreshed October 2025 with updated examples, tax insights, and insurer details.
10-second summary: If you’re a company director, your business can pay for your income protection policy, claim full corporation tax relief, and—best of all—there’s no Benefit-in-Kind for you. That means peace of mind and a tax-efficient safety net if illness or injury stops you working.
Not a company director? See our full guide to Income Protection by Job.
If you run your own company, you already know: when you’re not working, nothing moves.
Clients wait, cash slows, and the bills keep coming.
That’s where Income Protection for Company Directors steps in.
Your company pays the premiums, the insurer pays your income, and everyone stays afloat.
Who this is for: Limited company directors, contractors, consultants, husband-and-wife director companies, and PAYE directors taking income through salary.
It’s executive income protection paid by your company on your behalf. If you can’t work due to illness or injury, the insurer pays up to 75% of your salary (less any State Illness Benefit) until you recover or reach retirement age.
Think of it as regular income protection with two key upgrades:
For many Irish company directors, it’s one of the most tax-efficient ways to protect personal income.
Each month, your company pays the premium.
If you’re signed off work long-term, the insurer pays the benefit to your company after the deferred period has elapsed.
What’s a deferred period? It’s the waiting time between being signed off work and when your payments begin. The longer your deferred period, the lower your premium. Learn more in our guide to deferred periods.
Your company then pays your normal salary (net of PAYE, PRSI, USC).
You stay on payroll, your household bills stay covered, and your company stays afloat.
Cover can continue until age 70, depending on your setup and you can cancel it ay any time without penalty (like if you’re lucky enough to retire early)
Let’s be honest—most of us don’t get excited about insurance.
But mention tax relief and no Benefit-in-Kind, and suddenly the ears perk up.
For full details on how BIK works (and why this policy is exempt), see Revenue.ie’s Benefit-in-Kind guidance.
For any director trying to get money out of the business efficiently, executive income protection is one of the cleanest, most legitimate routes available.
Many company directors accidentally apply for standard personal income protection instead of executive income protection through their company.
That can create confusion around:
The structure matters almost as much as the policy itself.
This is why it’s important to set it up correctly from the start.
If you’re contributing to a company pension, you can also protect your pension payments through the same policy.
You can insure up to 33% of your salary (to a max of €50,000) to make sure pension contributions continue even if you’re out sick long-term.
It’s a small addition that keeps your retirement plans on track while protecting the rest of your income.
If you’re admitted to the hospital for more than seven consecutive days (three with Zurich) during your deferred period, the insurer pays a daily replacement income.
That means support can begin before your main deferred period ends, helping with bills and day-to-day costs while you recover.
Cost depends on:
For example:
Director, non-smoker, age 40
€70,000 income protected to age 68, 26-week deferred period.
Cost to company after tax relief: approx. €100 per month.
Your business can claim it as a deductible expense, and if your company can’t afford €100/month to protect its biggest asset (you), that’s a bigger conversation.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Colin Heffernan
“I found everyone I dealt with at Lion to be helpful and patient. Communication was prompt and clear throughout the process of applying for income protection and I felt I received excellent guidance as to which product/package was most suited to my needs. I would highly recommend them.”
Written by Nick McGowan, QFA RPA APA
Nick is a qualified financial advisor and founder of Lion.ie, a multi-agency Irish life insurance and income protection brokerage based in Tullamore.
He’s been helping people secure fair, transparent cover for over 15 years and was named Protection Broker of the Year 2022.
If you’d like straight answers without the sales pitch, learn more about Nick here.
As Ireland's leading life insurance broker, we specialise in comparing the rates and policies from the top five Irish life insurance providers and offering the very best value quotes to suit the individual needs of our clients. Our expertise lies in finding a suitable insurance plan for those with specific needs, be it a particular illness, occupation or claim history, we've got you covered in every sense!
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