Live Register grew by 3,000 people in December

CSO Live Register shows one in four on Live Register aged 25 to 34 years

Fri, 09 Jan, 2026 - 12:20

Martin Claffey

The seasonally adjusted Live Register for December 2025 was 172,200 people, up by 3,000 people from November, figures published on Friday by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed.

In Cork, there were 14,161 on the register - up 3.7% from a year previous, and up from 13,133 recorded in November - with 47,215 in Dublin, 6,290 in Kerry, 6,730 in Limerick, 5,659 in Tipperary, 3,941 in Clare, 5,456 in Waterford, and 7,942 in Galway.

The counties that recorded the largest percentage increases in the 12 months to December 2025 were Dublin, up 4,697 people (+11.0%), and Limerick, up 474 people (+7.6%)," said CSO statistician Conor Delves. The counties that recorded the largest percentage decreases in numbers in the 12 months to December 2025 were Donegal, down 258 people (-3.3%) and Monaghan, down 43 people (-2.3%).

The 25-34 years age group made up the largest number of people on the Live Register in December 2025 at 41,317 people, or 24% of the total. Some 19,870 people under the age of 25 were on the Live Register in December 2025, accounting for 11.5% of all claimants.

Of total numbers on the Live Register, 55.7% were male and 71.7% were Irish. There were 12,175 people benefitting from the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) included in the Live Register figures for December 2025.

The number of persons on the Live Register for one year or more in December 2025 was 52,665 - down 3,690 (-6.5%) from a year earlier. In December 2025, there were 119,559 people on the Live Register for less than one year, which was 11,108 more people (+10.2%) than in December 2024.