Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 July 2013
332. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Social Protection if a supplementary welfare allowance-rent supplement may be paid to a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33423/13]
View answer337. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Social Protection if rent supplement may be paid to a person in respect of a dwelling which was bequeathed to that person and several other siblings in equal shares; and if her Department officials are empowered to demonstrate a degree of flexibility in respect of the different circumstances of each case while also remaining within the general qualifying parameters of a departmental scheme. [33479/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 332 and 337 together.
The purpose of rent supplement is to provide short term income support to assist with reasonable accommodation costs of eligible people living in private rented accommodation who are unable to provide for their accommodation costs from their own resources and who do not have accommodation available to them from another source. Under the rules governing entitlement to rent supplement, the Department must establish that the applicant is a bona fide tenant. In determining whether the applicant is a bona fide tenant the Department will generally require documentary evidence including: details of the lease agreement, proof of ownership of the property, documentation that the tenancy has been registered with the PRTB, where necessary.
In addition, there a number of other qualifying conditions for the scheme including at the time of the application, the claimant must: have been residing in private rented accommodation (where at the commencement of the tenancy the person could have reasonably afforded the rent and has experienced a substantial change in his or her circumstances where they are now unable to pay the rent) or accommodation for homeless persons or in an institution (or any combination of these) for a period of 183 days within the preceding 12 months of the date of claim for rent supplement, or have had an assessment of housing need carried out within the 12 months preceding the date of claim and have been deemed by a housing authority to be eligible for and in need of social housing support. If these conditions are met, a customer’s entitlement to rent supplement will be considered.
