Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 January 2026
708. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Social Protection the rationale for the domiciliary care allowance ceasing when a child reaches 16 years-of-age; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6436/26]
View answer709. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Social Protection if he has examined the impact on families of requiring children who turn 16 years to transition from domiciliary care allowance to disability allowance, including the need for a new medical assessment during a critical stage of secondary education; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6437/26]
View answer710. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Social Protection whether he has considered extending eligibility for the domiciliary care allowance to age 18 years or for the duration of full-time secondary education, in line with other child related supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6438/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 708, 709 and 710 together.
Domiciliary Care Allowance is a monthly non-means tested payment to a parent or guardian for a child aged up to 16 who has a severe disability. The child must require care and attention substantially over and above that required by other children their age. Eligibility is not based on the disability or diagnosis, but rather on the impact of the disability in terms of the level of care and attention required by the child.
There are currently almost 62,500 families in receipt of Domiciliary Care Allowance in respect of just over 71,000 children. The estimated spend on this payment in 2026 is almost €359 million.
In Budget 2026, I provided for the monthly rate of Domiciliary Care Allowance to increase by €20 to €380 from this month.
Eligibility for Domiciliary Care Allowance ceases when a child reaches 16 years of age. This aligns with the age of eligibility for Disability Allowance. If the young person continues to have a disability that significantly impacts their daily life, they can then apply for a Disability Allowance payment in their own right.
Disability Allowance is a weekly means-tested income support payment for people aged 16 or over whose illness or disability means that they are substantially restricted from doing work that would be suitable for a person of their age, experience and qualifications. It is worth noting that the parent’s income is not assessed in the means test for Disability Allowance.
The two schemes are designed for different purposes and have different eligibility criteria and therefore require separate applications.
Applications for Disability Allowance can be made within 3 months before the child’s 16th birthday to ensure continuity of support. If their parent or guardian continues to provide full-time care they can then retain, or apply for, a carer's payment.
Improvements to the application form and the planned move to online application for Disability Allowance will make the application process easier for applicants.
My department published the Green Paper on Disability Reform in September 2023 in which one of the key proposals was to extend the upper age limit for Domiciliary Care Allowance and the lower age limit for Disability Allowance to 18 years of age. The Green Paper was a consultation document and was withdrawn following feedback from disability stakeholders.
Any future reform of disability or carers payments, including Domiciliary Care Allowance, will be considered in the context of our commitments in the Programme for Government and the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
