The government expects around 200 thousand people to lose their jobs due to the new Level 5 Covid restrictions.
They are due to come into force at midnight on Wednesday.
Level 5 will force all businesses deemed non-essential to close.
They will remain shut for 6 weeks, to reopen on December 1st.
Extra state supports worth 1.25 billion euro are being put in place.
Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys says most of that will be for people on the pandemic unemployment payment:
"We estimate that in the event of an additional 200,000 people availing of the PUP, the total cost of weekly payments will rise to in the region of €135 million per week in the weeks to come".
Back in May, when the number of people claiming the PUP peaked, just under 600,000 people were availing of the payment.
Today the payment was issued to 244,153 people.
