Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 October 2025
348. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Social Protection to consider increasing the number of hours an applicant can work, and retain payment on carers allowance, from 18.5, to help those who are providing full-time care on lower incomes and lower hourly pay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53195/25]
View answerCarer’s Allowance is a means-tested payment for people who are providing full-time care to someone who needs significant support due to age, physical or learning disability or illness, including mental illness. The main objective of the Carer’s Allowance payment is to provide an income support to carers whose ability to earn is substantially reduced because of their caring responsibilities.
To qualify for the Carer’s Allowance payment, the applicant must provides full-time care and attention to a person who is so incapacitated that they require this level of care for at least 12 months.
A carer is regarded as providing full-time care and attention to a relevant person, where the number of hours providing such care is not less than 35 hours in a period of seven consecutive days, and care is provided on any five days, whether consecutive or not, within a period of seven consecutive days.
While carer income support payments are based on the provision of full-time care and attention, it also allows carers to engage in work, training or education for up to 18.5 hours per week. In effect, a carer can engage in these activities for half of a full-time working week. During this time, adequate provision must be made for the care of the relevant person.
Both the full-time care and attention requirement and the 18.5-hour limitation are contained in the respective legislative provisions of the Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit and Carer’s Support Grant schemes.
The 18.5-hour limitation for Carer’s Allowance 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 education, training or employment, supporting a carer’s continued connection to the workforce and broader social inclusion.
Any proposals for changes to this condition would need to maintain this balance, and any changes to the eligibility criteria for Carer’s Allowance would have to be considered within a wider budgetary and policy context.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
