Disability Facts and Figures

There are more than 1.1 million people in Ireland living with a long-lasting condition or difficulty, according to Census 2022.

• 8% of the population experience a long-lasting condition or difficulty to a great extent or a lot
• 14% of the population experience one to some extent or a little
• 6% of the population experience blindness or a vision impairment
• 5% of the population experience deafness or a hearing impairment

Disabled People in Work

Ireland has one of the largest disability employment gaps in the European Union. As of 2024, the gap stood at 38.2%, compared with an EU average of 24% — placing Ireland fourth from the bottom among EU member states, ahead of only Lithuania, Croatia and Romania.

The disability employment gap measures the difference between the employment rate of disabled people and that of non-disabled people. Despite Ireland's overall employment rate remaining strong (74.3% by Q2 2026), that strength hasn't translated into comparable gains for disabled jobseekers, and the gap has continued to widen in recent years rather than close.

Extra Costs

Living with a disability in Ireland carries a significant additional financial burden. Research carried out by Indecon for the Department of Social Protection found that the extra cost of disability ranges from €9,482 to €11,734 a year, depending on individual circumstances — equivalent to roughly €488–€555 a week for an affected household.

These additional costs span areas including medicines, care and assistance, transport and mobility, home adaptation, social participation, and everyday essentials like food and heating.

Poverty

People affected by chronic illness or disability in Ireland face a considerably higher risk of poverty than the general population. In 2024, the at-risk-of-poverty rate stood at 15.5% for people with a self-reported chronic illness, compared with 9.1% for those without one — around six percentage points higher.

The picture is starker still for people unable to work due to long-term health problems, who recorded one of the highest rates of enforced deprivation of any group in 2024, at 38.5%. Separately, Eurostat data places Ireland's overall disability poverty rate at 32.7%, ranking it 20th out of 27 EU countries.

Attitudes

Ireland's most comprehensive study of public attitudes to disability remains the National Disability Authority's 2017 national survey, the fourth in a series stretching back to 2001. It found that almost three in four people knew someone with a disability personally, most through regular daily or weekly contact, and that attitudes had generally become more positive over time — particularly towards people with mental health difficulties. At the same time, the survey found the Irish public remained more sympathetic towards the rights of people with physical and sensory disabilities than towards those with cognitive or emotional impairments, and it recorded a decline in the perception that disabled people are treated fairly in Irish society.

A new Irish Disability Survey is currently in development, led by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality alongside the CSO, with questions being refined throughout 2026 ahead of a planned rollout following the 2027 Census.