Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 December 2025
547. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection if he has carried out a financial impact assessment of the planned automatic taxation of carer’s allowance and carer’s benefit from January 2026; if hardship protections or exemptions will be introduced for full-time carers on low incomes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [69544/25]
View answerTaxation is a matter for the Revenue Commissioners. However, I can confirm that Carer’s Allowance and Carer’s Benefit are and have been taxable sources of income.
From 1 January 2026, my Department will provide payment information directly to Revenue on a weekly basis . This equitable solution removes the requirement for individual carers to contact Revenue themselves. As the underlying tax treatment of these payments is not changing, and no new tax liability arises for carers as a result of this measure, a financial impact assessment was not required. The measure is an administrative improvement rather than a policy change and does not alter the amount of tax due by an individual.
It is important to note that if Carer's Allowance / Benefit is a person's only source of income, they are unlikely to have to pay tax. This is because their tax liability may not exceed their tax credits.
I hope that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
