Government spending rose 5.1% last month compared to January 2025 while taxes collected by the State increased by 0.6%.
The Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers said spending of €9.7 billion in January was below the rate of growth forecast in the Government's Medium Term Expenditure Framework.
That plan was criticised by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council for allowing spending ceilings which were higher than any other country in the EU.
Minister Chambers said: "As we begin the year and the implementation of Budget 2026, we remain focused on delivering value for money".
The Exchequer Returns for January published by the Department of Finance this afternoon show income tax rose 1% to €3.02 billion indicating the jobs market remains strong.
VAT in January, a key measure of consumer spending over Christmas, was up 3.3% to €4.18 billion.
Minister for Finance Simon Harris said the VAT figures "were solid, pointing to the underlying strength in our economy."
Overall tax revenue in January was €8.5bn up 0.6% on the same period last year, when back tax payments from Apple are excluded.
The Government also transferred €1.5 billion last month into two long term savings funds from windfall taxes paid by multinationals, leading to an exchequer surplus of €0.5 billion for January.
There was a 35% drop in corporation tax last month to €58m, although January is not usually an important month for corporation tax receipts.
