Legislation
The primary legislation governing safety in the use of ionising radiation in Ireland is the Radiological Protection Act, 1991 (as amended). This Act provided the legal basis for radiation protection in Ireland and established the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) as the national regulator. Following the merger of the RPII and the EPA in August 2014, the functions and responsibilities of the RPII were transferred to the EPA by the Radiological Protection (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 (No. 20 of 2014).
The European Union’s Basic Safety Standards (BSS) Directive establishes binding legal requirements governing the use of ionising radiation across all EU Member States. In Ireland this is implemented through two Statutory Instruments:
- The Ionising Radiation Regulations (2019) cover those aspects of the Directives for the protection of worker(s) and members of the public from the harmful effects of exposure to ionising radiations;
- The Medical Exposure Regulations (2018) cover the patient protection provisions of the Directive. In 2025 there was an amendment to these regulations.
Other relevant legislation includes:
This statutory instrument deals with the shipment of radioactive waste and gives effect in Ireland to Council Directive 2006/117/Euratom.
Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road Act, 1998 (Number 43 of 1998)
This legislation lays down conditions governing the transportation of radioactive (and other hazardous) material by road, including packaging, labelling and the suitability of vehicles involved in such activity. This Act puts into effect the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR).
These Regulations apply to the carriage, in tanks, in bulk and in packages, of dangerous goods by road, including the packing, loading, filling and unloading of the dangerous goods in relation to their carriage. They apply the provisions of Annexes A and B to the “European Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR)”. The Regulations are amended every two years to give affect to the ADR and are available on the Health and Safety Authority website.
Council Regulation (Euratom) No 1493/93 on shipments of radioactive substances between Member States
This regulation sets out the procedure to be followed when shipping sealed sources to other member states of the European Union.
The purpose of these Regulations is to transpose Commission Directive 2014/103/EU, in so far as it relates to transport of dangerous goods by rail, into national law through amendment of the European Communities (Transport of Dangerous Goods by Rail) Regulations 2010 (as amended by S.I. No. 201 of 2013). In addition, the 2010 Regulations are updated including an amendment to show that the Environmental Protection Agency is the competent authority for the purposes of Regulation 4(1)(c).
European Communities (Nuclear Safety) Regulations 2017, S.I. No. 332/2017
This regulation names the EPA as the competent authority in the State to carry out tasks in accordance with the Nuclear Safety Regulations and the Directive, in accordance with Article 5 of the European Directive. Under this Regulation, it outlines that Ireland must conduct a self-assessment of our national framework and competent regulatory authorities every 10 years. The last review took place in 2026.
IAEA Conventions
The EPA is the Competent Authority and national contact point under the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident, the EPA receives and assesses information on nuclear or radiological incidents abroad that may affect Ireland. The EPA also serves as Ireland's national contact point under the Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency (S.I. No. 144/1992), coordinating the exchange of information and technical expertise with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other countries during an emergency.