There were 517,347 people on either the Live Register or Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) in December, new figures show.
The figure represents a decrease of 3.4 per cent on the previous month.
Live Register figures eased slightly in December, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The seasonally adjusted Live Register figure was 193,700 in December, down 9,400 on the previous month.
In the last week of December, the CSO said 335,599 people were in receipt of the PUP.
Its research shows the number of people in receipt of the PUP decreased by 43,997 for the week ending January 3rd.
Almost a quarter were in each of the 25 to 34-year-old (23%) and 35 to 44-year-old (22%) age groups, the CSO added.
Some 785,687 people have received at least one PUP payment since the scheme was established last March, of which 55 per cent are male and 47 per cent are aged between 25 and 44 years of age.
CSO statistician Catalina Gonzalez said: “From the weekly breakdown of those receiving the PUP, it can also be seen that the number of those receiving the payment has fluctuated in the last five weeks, mainly due to the changes in the restrictions announced by the Government.
“As the most recent restrictions were imposed on December 30th 2020, it is expected we will see further changes in the coming weeks.”
