Child benefit is a payment to parents for the support of their children. It is paid to some 615,000 families in respect of 1.18 million children, with an expenditure of approximately €1.9 billion in 2014.
In order to ensure that child benefit is only paid to eligible families, a policy of issuing continuing eligibility certificates to parents commenced in 2008 and is still in operation. The child benefit control programme is kept under regular review based on the outcomes achieved. The continuing eligibility certificate programme forms part of the overall child benefit control programme and is included and described in the control policy for the scheme. The control policy is reviewed and updated regularly to ensure that controls in place to prevent fraud and abuse continue to be effective and relevant.
The Department undertook approximately 400,000 continuing eligibility reviews of child benefit customers in 2014. This control activity generated some €70 million in savings in respect of expenditure that would otherwise have occurred.
In 2015, a continuing eligibility certificate will issue to all Irish, including naturalised Irish, customers, to EU customers who are paid by EFT and based on their residency in Ireland and to all customers from outside of the EU. Two certificates will issue to all customers, including Irish, who are paid or part paid child benefit in Ireland on the basis of their continued employment within the EU.
The person concerned had been receiving continuing eligibility certificates on a six monthly basis, but this has now reduced to one certificate per year as she receives payment based on residency in Ireland. The most recent certificate was issued to her on the 29 June 2015 for completion to confirm her continued entitlement to child benefit.
