Workplace First Aid Compliance Checklist

For the full legal detail and reasoning behind every item below, see our Irish Workplace First Aid Regulations guide — this page is the shorter, action-focused companion to it.

• Confirm your headcount band — Travel Kit, 1–10, 11–25 or 26–50 persons (pro-rata above 50).
• Check your kit contents against the HSA's December 2024 table (below) for that band.
• No medications stored in the kit — the only exception is aspirin, and only if stored with an AED, for suspected cardiac chest pain, and only as part of training.
• Sterile items are in date — check regularly, not just at setup.
• No eye baths, cups or refillable containers used for eye irrigation — sealed, single-use, CE-marked containers only.
• If restocking an older kit, check contents against the table below rather than assuming it still matches — some items and quantities changed in December 2024.

• Identify your workplace type — factory/construction/quarry follows a different scale to offices, shops and schools.
• Count your current headcount and check it against the table below.
• Weigh up other risk factors too — hazards present, shift patterns, access to medical services, lone or remote working — before finalising numbers.
• Confirm each first-aider holds a current, in-date qualification — PHECC First Aid Response (FAR), or Emergency First Responder / EMT / Paramedic / Advanced Paramedic.
• Recertify PHECC FAR every 2 years.
• Keep written training records on file.

• First aid point clearly signed.
• Accessible to all staff — not locked away or hidden in a manager's office.
• If an AED is provided, its location is signposted too.
• Where lighting is poor, consider a high-visibility marker and a torch kept near the kit.

• Risk-assess whether eye wash provision is needed for your activities and substances.
• If needed: easily accessible, clean, and inspected and tested frequently.
• Access kept clear, with signage in place.
• If positioned externally, protected from adverse weather.
• Meets EN 15154 (emergency safety showers — plumbed and non-plumbed body/eye units).

• Consider an AED wherever a first-aider is present.
• If you have one: keep it registered and its consumables in date.
• Keep its location signposted (see Section 04).

For the full picture on AEDs — HSA guidance detail, registration and upkeep — see our AED Compliance in Ireland and Why Every Workplace Needs an AED guides, and our AED Maintenance Guide.

• Recertify first-aider training every 2 years (PHECC FAR).
• Check and restock kit contents regularly — sterile items expire.
• Review your risk assessment when the workplace, headcount or hazards change.
• Re-check first-aider numbers after any headcount change — moving between bands can change what's required.
• If you have an AED, keep it registered and its consumables in date — see our AED Guardian Service.

Is this checklist the same as the law itself?

No. This checklist is a practical way to work through your obligations — the legal text is the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007, S.I. No. 299 of 2007. Where this page and the regulations differ, the regulations govern.

Where do I find the full legal detail behind each checklist item?

Our Irish Workplace First Aid Regulations guide sets out the full legal detail behind every item on this checklist, section by section.

Does completing this checklist mean my workplace is certified compliant?

No. This is a self-check tool, not an accreditation or approval by any authority. For a formal compliance review, contact us or a qualified adviser.

Is an AED on this checklist a legal requirement?

No. An AED is recommended by the HSA's December 2024 guidelines wherever a first-aider is present, but it is not required under S.I. No. 299 of 2007.