Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 January 2026
554. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht when the dormant accounts funding scheme will open for 2026, and how groups can avail of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5201/26]
View answerThe main purpose of the Dormant Accounts Acts is to reunite account holders with their funds. Unclaimed funds are transferred to the Dormant Accounts Fund, which is managed by the National Treasury Management Agency. The beneficial owner has a right to reclaim their money at any time. The Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht has responsibility for the overall administration of the Dormant Accounts Fund, with individual Government Departments responsible for the delivery and administration of their own measures. All measures funded must be in line with the objectives set out in the legislation, that is, to address economic, social or educational disadvantage or to support persons with a disability. My Department launched the 2026 Dormant Accounts Action Plan in November 2025. It outlines 56 measures, to the value of €46.97 million, across 11 Government Departments. A full list of measures which have been approved for funding is set out in the Action Plan. Some measures have been funded in previous Action Plans and have now been approved for continued funding in 2026. Measures can progress over a number of years with funding drawn down from the Fund as spending is incurred. Many of the measures approved in the 2026 Action Plan relate to the delivery of specific projects and therefore have no further application processes. Where measures have an application process for interested organisations, each measure is operated by a relevant Department. As such, the timelines for applications differ for each measure and are a matter for individual Departments. Within my own Department, the total voted allocation for Dormant Account measures in 2026 is €11.57 million. This supports measures including Rethink Ireland, Supports for Social Enterprise, the Senior Alerts Scheme and Targeted Social Inclusion Measures. The Rethink Ireland measure and the Support for Social Enterprise measure both involve an application process for relevant organisations seeking funding. The former is operated by Rethink Ireland and the latter by Pobal, on behalf of the Department. Information on open calls by Rethink Ireland is available here: rethinkireland.ie/open-funds/. Information on the Social Enterprise measure calls on the Pobal website here: www.pobal.ie/programmes/ The 2026 Action Plan builds on previous plans and ensures continued support for individuals and organisations right across the country. Further information on the Dormant Accounts Fund, including all published Action Plans and Annual reports, is available on my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-rural-and-community-development-and-the-gaeltacht/policy-information/dormant-accounts-fund/
