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Illness Benefit Applications

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 January 2019

Tuesday, 29 January 2019

Questions (570)

John McGuinness

Question:

570. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 1118 of 15 January 2019, the value or purpose of allocating credited contributions from February 2018 in respect of a claim for illness benefit by a person (details supplied); if the person's application has been refused; if the person qualifies for invalidity pension; and if not, if the person will be refused for the same reasons. [4115/19]

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Written answers

Credited contributions (credits) are social insurance contributions designed to protect the social insurance entitlement record of insured workers who are not in a position to make PRSI contributions. Credits are awarded in circumstances such as unemployment or illness, and their purpose is to help protect the social insurance entitlements of insured persons during periods when they may not be in a position to pay contributions. Credits may enable insured workers to qualify for various social insurance benefits.

Invalidity pension, IP, is a payment for people who are permanently incapable of work because of illness or incapacity and who satisfy the pay related social insurance, PRSI, contribution conditions.

The PRSI contribution conditions for IP are that a person must have at least 260 (five years) paid PRSI contributions since entering social insurance and 48 contributions paid or credited in the last or second-last complete contribution year before the relevant date. Only PRSI classes A, E, H or S contributions are reckonable for IP purposes.

Entitlement to IP can only be determined on receipt of a completed application form. To date, there is no record of the Department having received a claim for IP from the lady concerned. I have arranged for an application form to be issued to her on 25 January 2019.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

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