The Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Act 2021 was signed into law by President Higgins on 22 July 2021 and became fully operational from 20 October the same year. The goal of this amendment is to assist in protecting the viability and sustainability of family farms and family-run businesses.A condition of receiving the financial relief offered under the Act is that a family successor commits to working the productive asset for a substantial part of their working time for a period of 6 years. In line with the policy objective to ensure the viability of family farms and businesses the Act clearly defines who can be a family successor.The principal amendment introduced under the Act extended the three-year cap on contributions based on farm and business assets where an appointed family successor commits to working the productive asset for a period of 6 years. To be considered for the 3-year cap, the legislation requires that an asset owned by an applicant for the Scheme, or recently transferred to a family member, is a productive family asset that has been actively worked by a family member for a significant period of time in advance of the person entering care.Once a family successor has been appointed on an asset, time already spent in care is taken into account when applying the three-year cap. This means that, if someone has already been in care for more than three years, and successfully appoints a family successor under the Act, they can immediately benefit from the 3-year cap on their contributions from the particular asset. However, the amendment does not provide for any retrospective relief or refunds on contributions to care made before the family successor is appointed. This means that reliefs offered under the Amendment will apply from the date the family successor is appointed.The exact wording of this legislation can be found at the following link: www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2021/act/27/enacted/en/print#sec2It is important to note that when developing the legislation, significant consideration was given to the question of land that is subject to a lease agreement and the method of assessing income from productive assets that are leased. Following careful consideration, it was decided that the Scheme will not extend to include assets that are subject to lease agreements. The policy intent of this amendment is to protect family farms and businesses that will remain within the family as a source of employment and income into the future. This policy would not be advanced if income from leasing arrangements was included in the proposed cap on financial contributions to the cost of care.However, I would recommend that specific questions about whether certain land uses would be allowable within the requirements on the family successor under the scheme be made with the HSE Nursing Home Support Scheme Office.
