Vol. 442 No. 10
9 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will grant payment of the dependent allowance to recipients of unemployment benefit in respect of children who have reached the age of 18 but are still in second level education, in view of the hardship caused by this anomaly; and if he will examine the case of a person (details supplied) in County Waterford whose son has reached the age of 18 years and is due to sit his Leaving Certificate Examination this year.
A child ceases to be regarded as a dependant for unemployment benefit purposes when the child attains 18 years of age. However, where the child is disqualified from receiving unemployment assistance for three months from the date of leaving second level education or completion of the leaving certificate examination, whichever is the later the child dependant allowance is payable with unemployment benefit for those three months.
The child in question attained 18 years on 15 May 1994 and payment of a child dependant increase ceased on that date. The person concerned will have an entitlement to a child dependant increase for the child in question for a maximum of three months after the child completes his leaving certificate examination.
Any extension of the payment of child dependant increases with unemployment benefit for children over 18 years of age who continue to participate in second level education would have cost implications which would have to be considered in a budgetary context.
