The Central Statistics Office has said that Irish Water has been provisionally placed on the Government's balance sheet as one of the bodies included in the central government sector.
It means that borrowing by Irish Water would have to be included in Government borrowing figures under the Excessive Deficit Procedure.
The CSO website states that the move is "a preliminary and provisional classification, agreed with Eurostat pending a final classification".
The decision was part of the most recent update to the Register of Public Sector Bodies in Ireland and has been described as a "prudential measure".
Eurostat is currently considering if Irish Water will be judged to be financially separate to the Government and therefore off-balance sheet or part of the central government sector.
It is expected that decision will be announced in about eight to 12 weeks and before the October 2015 Excessive Deficit Procedure results.
