A Special Saving Incentive Account (SSIA) was a type of interest-bearing account in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. These accounts were available to open between 1 May 2001 and 30 April 2002, and featured a state-provided top-up of 25% of the sum deposited.
Scheme details
Introduced in the ''Finance Act 2001'', the SSIA was structured so that the
Government of Ireland
The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland.
The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The gover ...
contributed one
euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
for every four invested by the account holder. The maximum contribution was €254 per month. For deposit account SSIAs, banks paid interest on top of the government bonus and principal accumulated. Equity SSIAs were also available to investors seeking higher returns than the state-guaranteed minimum of 25%.
The scheme, which was restricted to those over eighteen, was most popular among middle-income earners.
[ All SSIAs matured five years from the date of opening.
]
Intended effects
In 2006/7 the maturing SSIA funds were hoped to boost the slowing Irish economy. The funds amounted to €14 billion and were expected to increase the purchasing power of Irish consumers who would in turn help the Irish economy through increased spending.[ This ]consumer expenditure
Consumer spending is the total money spent on final goods and services by individuals and households.
There are two components of consumer spending: induced consumption (which is affected by the level of income) and autonomous consumption (which ...
was an important factor in increasing government's tax revenue for its ambitious capital expenditure plans.
Criticisms
Opposition parties questioned the effectiveness of the scheme in dampening inflation (running at 7% at its peak) and also the timing of the maturities, which they claimed would benefit the government at the 2007 general election.
References
External links
Irish Revenue Commissioners' overview
Banking in Ireland
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