My Department provides a comprehensive package of carers’ income supports including Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant. Combined spending on these payments in 2023 is estimated at almost €1.6 billion.
The Carer's Benefit payment is an entitlement based on social insurance contributions. Carer’s Benefit is a payment made to insured people who may be required to leave the workforce or reduce their working hours to care for a person(s) in need of full-time care. 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). Carer's Benefit is €237 a week in respect of one care recipient.
A primary qualifying condition for the Carer’s Benefit and Carer’s Allowance payments is that the applicant provides full-time care and attention to a person in need of such a level of care. The person being cared for must be so incapacitated as to require full-time care and attention and be likely to require this full-time care and attention for at least 12 months.
The minimum weekly work hours requirement for eligibility is set at 16 and not 18 as the Deputy outlines. A person may qualify for Carer’s Benefit if they meet the PRSI and other conditions of the scheme and have been full-time employed for at least 8 weeks in the previous 26 weeks. Full-time employment in this context is defined as insurable employment for at least 16 hours per week or 32 hours per fortnight. This condition does not need to be satisfied on a second or subsequent claim where a person was in receipt of Carer's Benefit within the previous 26 weeks.
The provision of full-time care and attention requirement is moderated somewhat by allowing a carer to work or engage in education or training for up to 18.5 hours a week. Budget 2020 changed the rules so that those in receipt of Carer’s Benefit, Carer’s Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant could increase the number of hours they work, study or attend a training course from 15 to 18.5 hours. This measure was prioritised in response to the carers who expressed that they found 15 hours to be too restrictive, not only for work but for education and training purposes.
During any period of employment or education or training, adequate provision must be made for the care of the relevant person. It is considered that the current hours condition represents a reasonable balance between meeting the requirement for providing full-time care for the care recipient and the needs of the carer to engage in employment, training or education. It also serves the additional purpose of reducing the social alienation experienced by many carers.
I trust that this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
