Ireland—Banking & Financial Services analysis: This article was written by Ruth Lillis, partner (Debt Finance), Sarah Thompson, partner (Financial Regulation), David Molloy, partner (Debt Finance), Phil Cody, partner (Structured Finance and Securitisation), Katherine Quirke, of counsel (Debt Finance) and Sinéad Cantillon, senior professional support lawyer (Debt Finance), of Arthur Cox LLP. It covers measures relating to financial services legislation and regulation, sector-specific initiatives, digital assets and tokenisation, sustainable finance and skills, and the Strategy's broader aim of strengthening Ireland's competitiveness as an international financial services centre.

Law360: The EU's highest court has fined Ireland €4.5m over 'persistent' delays bringing in telecommunications regulations designed to overhaul the industry and improve connection speeds and services across the EU.

NOTE—to see whether notification thresholds in the Republic of Ireland and throughout the world are met, see further: Where to Notify. 1. Have there been any recent developments regarding the Irish merger control regime and are any updates/developments expected in the coming year? Are there any other ‘hot’ merger control issues in Ireland? The Irish Competition (Amendment) Act 2022 (the 2022 Act) expanded the merger control powers of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC). One notable change saw the introduction of a 'call-in' provision allowing the CCPC to require notification of below-threshold transactions where the relevant deal may undermine competition in markets for goods or services within the Republic of Ireland/the State. After a period of more intense monitoring of non-notifiable transactions, including the issuing of formal requests for information (RFIs), the CCPC recently exercised this 'call-in' power for the first time. On 20 March 2026, the CCPC announced the 'call-in' of the acquisition by Uniphar (a major pharmaceutical wholesaler/operator of retail pharmacies) of TouchStore (a developer and provider of software to

MLex: The EU AI Act is affecting multinationals ahead of coming into effect via a ‘ripple effect’ and Ireland needs to be in the vanguard of the Act’s implementation and enforcement in the bloc, representatives from Accenture, EY and PwC in Ireland told a parliamentary committee on 15 May 2024. Effective, efficient artificial technology regulation will also benefit the companies based in the country and its overall economy. All three consultancies are seeing a surge in enquiries about how to comply with the Act.

The Energy Charter Secretariat has announced that Ireland has submitted written notification of its decision to withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT). Under Article 47(2) of the ECT, the withdrawal will take effect one year after the Secretariat’s receipt of the notification. In line with Article 47(4) of the ECT, the Energy Charter Protocol on Energy Efficiency and Related Environmental Aspects will also cease to apply to Ireland on that date. Ireland’s withdrawal from both the ECT and the Protocol will therefore take effect on 28 April 2027.

MLex: Ireland will propose a ban on imports from Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories amid the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The decision comes as pressure builds to reassess the EU’s trade relations with Israel, following a call by a majority of member states to review the EU-Israel Association Agreement over human-rights concerns.

Law360, London: Ireland said 24 July 2025 that it would seek to further reform how personal injury claims are handled, as it unveiled an action plan to tackle the spiraling cost of insurance.

Law360: Ireland's biggest tax expenditure by far is its research and development tax credit, with the country forgoing around €1.4bn in revenue in 2023 in connection to the credit, the Irish Department of Finance said 15 July 2025.

The article, written by Caoilfhionn Ní Chuanacháin, partner, and Sinead Lardner, associate, at Addleshaw Goddard Ireland explores revised Court Rules that have been introduced to simplify the procedure for seeking leave from the Court for service of proceedings outside Ireland.

Law360: Insurance companies in Ireland have been accused of 'profiteering' from personal injury reforms rather than passing savings on to customers in the form of lower premiums.

MLex: Ireland has called on the European Commission to make the country-of-origin principle a cornerstone of its upcoming digital simplification package, arguing that predictable cross-border rules are essential to reduce the patchwork of overlapping EU digital laws. In the letter dated 14 October 2025, Ireland also urged the commission to clarify the interplay between major digital regulations through harmonized definitions and coordinated enforcement, warning that without such steps, Europe’s digital single market risks being undermined by regulatory incoherence.

Law360: The Irish Government set out its plans for a new participation tax exemption for foreign dividends as part of a finance bill published 10 October 2024.