Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 February 2024
299. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Social Protection if there is a way to have contributions for self-employed persons working the requisite number of hours to qualify for carer's benefit where they do not pay contributions in class A, B, C, D, E and H; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5039/24]
View answerCarer's Benefit is a Pay Related Social Insurance based payment made to insured people who leave the workforce or reduce their working hours to care for a child or an adult in need of full-time care and attention. It is payable for a period of 2 years (104 weeks) for each care recipient and may be claimed over separate periods up to a total of 2 years (104 weeks).
Only Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contributions paid at classes A, B, C, D, E and H are counted towards Carer's Benefit. Contributions paid at class S (self-employed contributions) do not count.
Self-employed workers whose income is €5,000 or more in a contribution year, are liable to pay social insurance contributions at the class S rate of 4%, subject to a minimum annual payment of €500. Where all qualification criteria for the particular scheme are satisfied, this class of PRSI gives access to the following benefits:
• Adoptive Benefit,
• Guardian's Payment (Contributory),
• Invalidity Pension,
• Jobseeker's Benefit (Self-Employed),
• Maternity Benefit,
• Parent's Benefit,
• Partial Capacity Benefit (where in receipt of Invalidity Pension),
• Paternity Benefit,
• State Pension (Contributory),
• Treatment Benefit, and
• Widows, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) Pension.
The benefits to which class S PRSI does not provide access are -
• Carer's Benefit,
• Health and Safety Benefit,
• Illness Benefit, and
• Occupational Injuries Benefits.
There has been an extensive expansion of access to the range of social insurance benefits for self-employed social insurance contributors in recent years without any increase in the 4% rate of contribution made by them. In effect, self-employed contributors, in return for a contribution of 11 percentage points lower than for employed contributors, have access to benefits which comprise over 90% of the value of all benefits available to employed contributors.
Any changes in access to schemes for self-employed contributors would need to be considered in an overall policy and budgetary context, including the appropriate contribution rates.
I trust this clarifies the matter.
