Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 April 2026
91. Deputy Peter Roche asked the Minister for Social Protection on the possibility of extending the domiciliary care allowance eligibility age from 16 to 18 years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29139/26]
View answerDomiciliary Care Allowance is a non-means-tested payment to a parent or guardian for a child aged up to 16 who has a severe disability which means that they require care and attention substantially over and above that required by other children their age.
Eligibility for Domiciliary Care Allowance 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 is no restriction on the number of children for whom a person may claim the payment. In other words, where a person is caring for more than one child who qualifies for Domiciliary Care Allowance, they may claim the monthly allowance for each.
From January 2026, the rate of Domiciliary Care Allowance increased from €360 to €380 per month. More than 63,600 families are currently receiving Domiciliary Care Allowance in respect of approximately 72,500 children. The estimated expenditure on the scheme in 2026 is almost €359 million.
Domiciliary Care Allowance ceases to be payable when a child reaches 16 years of age. This is aligned with the age of eligibility for Disability Allowance. If the young person continues to suffer from a disability that significantly impacts their daily living activities, they can then apply for a Disability Allowance payment in their own right of €254 per week. In addition, if their parent or guardian continues to provide full-time care they can then retain, or apply for, a carer's income support payment.
One of the key proposals in the Green Paper on Disability Reform 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. Based on the feedback received from disability stakeholders during the public consultation, the process was discontinued.
The Programme for Government contains a wide range of commitments for family carers which will continue to be advanced over the lifetime of the Government, taking account of available resources. We have committed to progressively increasing the rate of the Domiciliary Care Allowance and to examining the extension of the free travel scheme to children in respect of whom the payment is in place.
Any further reforms to Domiciliary Care Allowance, could only be considered in the context of these commitments and the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025–2030, having regard to budgetary resources.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
