Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 March 2026
338. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated annual cost of increasing the minimum weekly working family payment from €20 to €30, to €40, and to €50; the estimated number of households that would benefit from each increase, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23379/26]
View answerThe Working Family Payment is a tax-free income support designed to prevent in-work poverty for low paid employees with child dependents, and to offer a financial incentive to take-up employment.
There are some 52,000 households in receipt of the Working Family Payment. The average payment, as of February 2026, was €203 per week. Legislation provides for a minimum weekly payment of €20, payable to those who would otherwise qualify for a lower rate.
Based on the operational information available there are some 672 households in receipt of a Working Family Payment of between €20 and €25 per week, and an additional 1796 households in receipt of a Working Family Payment of between €25 and €50 per week.
If it is assumed that these households are equally distributed across their rate bands, the approximate cost and estimated number of households benefitting from an increase in the minimum payment to €30, €40 and €50 is shown in the table below.
|
Minimum Payment |
Estimated number of households benefitting |
Approximate Estimated Cost |
|
€30 |
1032 |
€310,000 |
|
€40 |
1750 |
€1,050,000 |
|
€50 |
2468 |
€2,150,000
|
It should be noted that these figures are rounded estimates based on average payments and an assumed equal distribution of household rates. The figures also do not take into account other factors such as an increased uptake of Working Family Payment due to a rise in the minimum payment, or movement of customers from other schemes.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
