The Government has confirmed that the Pandemic Unemployment Payment scheme will close to new applicants from tomorrow.
The announcement comes after Taoiseach Micheal Martin confirmed a sweeping end to Covid restrictions from Saturday morning.
Those already availing of the payment will remain in receipt of it until March 8 - a four week extension on what had previously announced.
PUP recipients will then move to a weekly rate of €208 before moving to a standard jobseekers payment from April 5.
Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys said: "The Pandemic Unemployment Payment has been an absolutely vital support for workers and their families.
"What was originally intended to be just a six week short-term payment will now last for over two years with over €9 Billion in payments issued to workers.
"In line with the widespread lifting of restrictions from tomorrow, the Government has today approved plans for the winding down of the PUP over the coming months.
"The decision to lift restrictions represents a hugely positive step which will see tens of thousands of people return to work over the coming weeks as the country begins to return to normal."
Almost all Covid restrictions were confirmed to end from tomorrow by Mr Martin earlier this evening.
These include an end to early pub closing times, the requirement for vaccine passes in indoor venues and capacity limits at both indoor and outdoor events.
The Taoiseach hailed the news as a "good day" for the country that was made possible due to the nation's "world class vaccination programme".
But he sounded a note of caution that the pandemic wasn't over and pledged to invest further in healthcare to prepare for any further waves of the virus.
He said: "It is important also to say that I can’t promise you there won’t be further twists in this pandemic requiring different decisions in the future.
"But I do know this: solidarity with each other and trust in science has got us to where we are today, and will get us through whatever else this virus may throw at us.
"In the meantime, part of the job of Government will be to make sure that we are prepared for any future wave of the disease. We will continue to expand our hospital and ICU capacity.
"We will continue our investment in an expanded public health service and we will embed the lessons learned in the pandemic into community and primary care services. We will ensure that we are ready for any future surges.
"Our vaccination programme will continue and work is underway to ensure that a flexible and robust vaccine delivery system is in place for the future."
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