Your Athlone accounting team, on both banks of the Shannon

Searching for accountants in Athlone who keep the books, file VAT returns, run payroll and look after company formation in Athlone without an office visit? staxo is the complete team that runs management, bookkeeping and accounting for small Irish businesses, fully online and serving Athlone from Ireland. We work day and night with AI, and nothing goes to Revenue or the CRO until you have seen it and approved it.

Athlone is one town in two counties. The CSO counted 22,869 people here in April 2022, across the Westmeath and Roscommon sides of the Shannon, with an average age of 37.1. That split matters to an owner, because the bank of the river decides which council bills your rates and which Local Enterprise Office you deal with. Whether you start a business in Athlone this year or run an established firm, we build those details into your books from day one.

22,869 people lived in Athlone, counties Westmeath and Roscommon, in April 2022 (CSO Census 2022)

Business in Athlone

Athlone sits on the River Shannon where Westmeath meets Roscommon, and its economy mixes multinational employers, a university campus, State agencies and a busy town centre. A 2019 town profile hosted by LEO Westmeath describes it as an emerging hub for life sciences, technology and global business services, built around the IDA Business and Technology Park at Garrycastle and the campus now run by the Technological University of the Shannon. Enterprise Ireland keeps an office at Auburn on the Dublin Road. The town has quick access to the M6 and trains east to Dublin Heuston and west to Galway, and in January 2023 it launched Ireland's first all-electric town bus service, with 11 buses.

Life sciences and medtech

The 2019 profile puts life sciences and medical technology at the heart of Athlone's industrial base, around the Garrycastle park and the university campus. It quotes Teleflex, which has operated in Athlone since 2007, and the NPD Group in global business services. Suppliers and consultants working for these sites depend on clean job costing and prompt invoicing.

Energy and engineering services

EnerMech, an energy and infrastructure services firm, opened its first Irish facility in the IDA park in Athlone in September 2022, with a target of 170 jobs over three years. In October 2024 IDA Ireland's Ballymahon Road site was rezoned for a second business and technology park, with a 465 metre internal road and no tenants named yet. Construction subcontractors at either site deal with RCT on each payment.

Higher education and research

The Technological University of the Shannon has its Athlone campus on University Road. The 2019 profile describes a campus incubator, the Midlands Innovation and Research Centre, and research institutes carried over from the former Athlone Institute of Technology. Founders spinning a company out of the campus need shareholdings recorded properly and grant claims backed by tidy records.

Retail, visitors and the town centre

Shops, cafés and service firms trade on both banks. Budget 2026 named Athlone as a new regional centre in the Living City Initiative, which runs to 2030 and covers buildings built before 1975, including over the shop space converted to homes. Ask your accountant whether a property qualifies before you commit to works. Athlone Castle Visitor Centre in St Peter's Square is temporarily closed for works.

What staxo does for a Athlone business

staxo is the complete team behind the management, bookkeeping and accounting of a small business in Athlone. We work fully online from Ireland, day and night with AI, and nothing goes to Revenue or the CRO until you approve it.

Bookkeeping in Athlone, kept current every week

Take Cronin Electrical Ltd, our example electrical contractor, wiring an office fit-out at the Garrycastle park one month and an over the shop flat in the town centre the next. Wholesaler invoices, van costs and stage payments arrive from all sides. staxo matches each one to the bank feed and the right job, applies RCT where the work is construction, and chases what is unpaid, so the director knows which jobs pay.

VAT returns for a café by the Shannon

Harbour View Café, our example café, sits by the river and sells coffee, lunches and cakes to eat in or take away. Food and drink on one till can carry different VAT rates. staxo sorts each sale by rate, reclaims VAT on the coffee machine and supplies, and prepares the VAT3 well before the deadline. It goes to ROS only after you approve the figure.

Payroll for a clinic on the Roscommon side

Blackrock Physio, our example clinic, opens in Monksland and hires a receptionist and a second physiotherapist. staxo registers the practice as an employer, runs each pay period, reports every pay date to Revenue and sends payslips once you approve the run. Because the clinic is in County Roscommon, its rates come from Roscommon County Council and its grant questions go to LEO Roscommon, and we diarise both.

Year end, CT1 and the CRO annual return

An Athlone limited company has three year-end jobs: financial statements, the CT1 for Revenue and the annual return to the CRO. A sole trader files a Form 11. With the books kept all year, staxo prepares each one early, shows you the tax figure before preliminary tax is due and files only after you sign off. Tidy accounts also support a Priming Grant or Grow Digital application.

Monthly numbers for growing and exporting firms

Each month you see sales, costs, cash, VAT owed and who owes you, on one page. If you ship goods abroad, Athlone Chamber issues Certificates of Origin, and staxo records EU sales correctly for VIES. A consultancy serving the medtech sites, or an engineering subcontractor waiting on a big invoice, spots the cash gap early. Ask the team anything at any hour and get a plain English answer.

Company formation in Athlone, handled online

staxo sets up a limited company from €199 or registers a sole trader from €49, fully online. For a company the CRO needs a name that passes its checks, a director with a PPSN, a company secretary, a registered office in the State, a constitution and a signed Form A1, plus a fee of about €50. Your Athlone home, on either bank, can be the registered office, so no lease is needed. The ordinary online A1 queue at the CRO is currently about two weeks.

  1. We check the name against the CRO register and can reserve it for you.
  2. You send director and secretary details, including each director's PPSN.
  3. You pick the registered office, often your Athlone home, and approve the constitution.
  4. You sign the Form A1 online and we file it with the CRO.
  5. Once incorporated, we register the company with Revenue through ROS.

Within five months of incorporation the company records its beneficial owners on the RBO. Revenue registration covers corporation tax, plus VAT and PAYE when they apply. A different trading name needs a CRO business name. The first annual return is due six months after incorporation, and staxo diarises each date.

The right LEO for a new Athlone company depends on its address. LEO Westmeath offers east bank founders a free advisor meeting and mentoring. On the west bank, LEO Roscommon's Priming Grant can fund up to 50% of investment, usually capped at €80,000, for a qualifying micro enterprise in its first 18 months.

How company formation works in Ireland · Register a business online

Local Enterprise Office and supports

Athlone is served by two Local Enterprise Offices, and neither lists an office in the town. LEO Westmeath, at Áras an Chontae on Mount Street in Mullingar (044 9338945, weekdays 9:00 to 5:00), covers the east bank with a free meeting with a business advisor, mentoring, training, Priming Grants and the Grow Digital voucher. LEO Roscommon, at Áras an Chontae in Roscommon town, covers the west bank with advice clinics, mentoring and Feasibility, Priming and Business Expansion Grants.

Local Enterprise Office Westmeath and Local Enterprise Office Roscommon · Athlone Chamber · Athlone Business and Technology Park, Garrycastle · Campus incubator at TUS Athlone

Rates, the council and Revenue

Your rates bill depends on the bank of the Shannon. Westmeath County Council covers the east side, the larger part of the town, and its 2026 Annual Rate on Valuation is 0.2134, up from 0.194. Roscommon County Council covers the west side, including Monksland, at 0.248, up from 0.2362. The bill is the rateable valuation multiplied by that rate, so the same valuation costs more on the Roscommon bank. Westmeath answers on 044 9332000 and Roscommon's rates office on 090 6637100.

Revenue lists no public office in Athlone, Westmeath or Roscommon. Its nearest listed office is on Fairgreen Road in Galway, open 09:30 to 13:30 on weekdays, with priority for appointments. An Athlone business registers for tax through ROS and asks questions through MyEnquiries in ROS or myAccount, and the business helpline is 01 7383630.

Nearby towns we also serve

The same team and the same books follow you if you trade across County Westmeath or open in a second town.

All towns we serve

Guides

Plain guides for Irish owners on the filings that come up most.

Accountants in Athlone: your questions

Which council sets commercial rates in Athlone?

It depends on which side of the Shannon your premises stands. Westmeath County Council covers the east bank, with a 2026 Annual Rate on Valuation of 0.2134, and Roscommon County Council covers the west bank, including Monksland, at 0.248. Local press reported a 15% rates grant in Westmeath for 2026, capped at €825 on bills up to €5,500, and Roscommon waiving its 5% increase for bills under €20,000. Confirm with the council before relying on either.

Which Local Enterprise Office covers Athlone?

Two do. LEO Westmeath, based at Áras an Chontae on Mount Street in Mullingar, serves businesses on the east bank, and LEO Roscommon, at Áras an Chontae in Roscommon town, serves the west bank. Neither lists an office in Athlone, so contact the one for your address through its website or by email: localenterprise@westmeathcoco.ie or localenterprise@roscommoncoco.ie.

Can I set up a company in Athlone from my home address?

Yes. A home on either bank of the Shannon can be the registered office, provided it is in the State, so there is no lease to sign. staxo forms a limited company from €199 or registers a sole trader from €49. We prepare the constitution and Form A1 from your details, including the director's PPSN, and file them with the CRO, which charges about €50. Online filings currently take about two weeks.

How do I register as a sole trader in Athlone?

Register with Revenue for income tax online through ROS, which Revenue calls the fastest way to register. The paper alternative for individuals is Form TR1. staxo handles the registration from €49 and, if you trade under a name other than your own, registers the business name with the CRO. Before you start, book the free advisor meeting at LEO Westmeath or an advice clinic at LEO Roscommon, depending on your side of the river.

Where is the nearest Revenue office to Athlone?

Revenue lists no public office in Athlone or in counties Westmeath and Roscommon. Its offices are in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick, and Galway, on Fairgreen Road, is the nearest. They open 09:30 to 13:30 on weekdays, with priority for appointments. You may never need to visit: registration runs through ROS, questions go through MyEnquiries, and staxo files through ROS as your agent.

What grants can an Athlone business apply for?

It depends on your side of the river. LEO Westmeath's Grow Digital voucher pays 50% of eligible costs, from €500 up to €5,000, for firms with 1 to 50 paid employees trading for at least six months. LEO Roscommon's Priming Grant includes employment support of up to €15,000 per full-time job for qualifying micro enterprises. Budget 2026 also brought Athlone into the Living City Initiative for buildings built before 1975.

Sources and last reviewed

Last reviewed 2026-10-16. Rates, grants and hub details change, so check the source before you act on a figure.

Start or run your Athlone business with staxo

Register online, then let staxo keep the books, VAT and payroll in order while you approve each step.

Company formation in Ireland · Online accounting · Sole trader accounting · Limited company accounting · VAT returns · Pricing