Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 June 2026
68. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Social Protection the average processing times for carer's allowance, disability allowance, and domiciliary care allowance applications; the number of applications awaiting decision in each scheme; the average time taken to determine appeals in each scheme in 2025 and to date in 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46257/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn Appeals Modernisation Project was successfully finalized in Q1 2025 to streamline the end-to-end user experience. This initiative successfully launched online appeal functionalities directly through the MyWelfare platform, ensuring a significantly faster intake process for citizens.
Following this rollout, the new Social Welfare Appeals Regulations (S.I. No. 744 of 2024) officially came into operation on 28 April 2025. These modernised regulations introduced strict operational timeframes and standardized consistency across all files. Coupled with active caseload management by the Chief Appeals Officer, these combined measures have successfully driven down both the overall volume of appeals on hand and average processing durations.
The Chief Appeals Officer continues to monitor processing times and every effort is made to reduce the time taken to process an appeal. However, the drive for efficiency must be balanced with the competing demand to ensure that decisions are consistent and made in accordance with the provisions set out in primary legislation and regulations.
The table below sets out the average time to award for each month of 2025 and to date in 2026 for Disability Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, and Invalidity Pension.
|
|
|
|
Average time to award in weeks |
|
|
Carer's Allowance |
Disability Allowance |
Domiciliary Care Allowance |
|
Jan-25 |
9 |
7 |
6 |
|
Feb-25 |
8 |
6 |
5 |
|
Mar-25 |
5 |
5 |
4 |
|
Apr-25 |
6 |
6 |
5 |
|
May-25 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
|
Jun-25 |
5 |
6 |
6 |
|
Jul-25 |
6 |
6 |
8 |
|
Aug-25 |
7 |
6 |
9 |
|
Sep-25 |
6 |
6 |
10 |
|
Oct-25 |
5 |
6 |
8 |
|
Nov-25 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
|
Dec-25 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
|
Jan-26 |
8 |
6 |
7 |
|
Feb-26 |
7 |
6 |
7 |
|
Mar-26 |
6 |
5 |
5 |
|
Apr-26 |
6 |
6 |
7 |
|
May-26 |
6 |
6 |
7 |
The table below sets out the number of applications pending at end of the period for each month of 2025 and to date in 2026 for Disability Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, and Invalidity Pension.
|
|
|
|
Applications pending at months end |
|
|
Carer's Allowance |
Disability Allowance |
Domiciliary Care Allowance |
|
Jan-25 |
2,283 |
2,724 |
1,016 |
|
Feb-25 |
2,168 |
3,056 |
1,169 |
|
Mar-25 |
2,052 |
3,077 |
1,404 |
|
Apr-25 |
2,198 |
3,201 |
1,576 |
|
May-25 |
2,300 |
2,986 |
2,272 |
|
Jun-25 |
2,382 |
3,195 |
2,458 |
|
Jul-25 |
2,407 |
3,023 |
2,401 |
|
Aug-25 |
2,682 |
3,194 |
2,370 |
|
Sep-25 |
2,500 |
3,396 |
2,080 |
|
Oct-25 |
2,248 |
3,706 |
1,863 |
|
Nov-25 |
2,687 |
3,210 |
1,772 |
|
Dec-25 |
2,727 |
2,960 |
1,822 |
|
Jan-26 |
2,793 |
2,888 |
1,793 |
|
Feb-26 |
2,938 |
3,282 |
1,868 |
|
Mar-26 |
2,860 |
3,732 |
1,997 |
|
Apr-26 |
2,780 |
3,490 |
2,339 |
|
May-26 |
2,629 |
3,617 |
2,782
|
The table below sets out the average appeals processing time for each month of 2025 and to date in 2026 for Disability Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, and Invalidity Pension. Please note that figures refer to the appeals being progressed on the new platform developed as part of the aforementioned Appeals Modernisation Project; there may have been some legacy appeals in progress on the old system which are not captured here.
|
|
|
|
Average appeal processing times in weeks |
|
|
Carer's Allowance |
Disability Allowance |
Domiciliary Care Allowance |
|
Jan-25 |
21.3 |
20.2 |
21.5 |
|
Feb-25 |
20.7 |
23 |
18.4 |
|
Mar-25 |
24.2 |
24.4 |
19.4 |
|
Apr-25 |
17.5 |
28.7 |
16.3 |
|
May-25 |
15 |
27.2 |
35.2 |
|
Jun-25 |
22.2 |
23.7 |
29.3 |
|
Jul-25 |
34.9 |
26.8 |
12.1 |
|
Aug-25 |
38.6 |
16.3 |
11.3 |
|
Sep-25 |
25.8 |
17.9 |
9.9 |
|
Oct-25 |
18.6 |
19.8 |
11 |
|
Nov-25 |
18.9 |
12.8 |
12.1 |
|
Dec-25 |
21.3 |
14.3 |
15.3 |
|
Jan-26 |
22.5 |
14.1 |
14.7 |
|
Feb-26 |
19.3 |
12.3 |
10.4 |
|
Mar-26 |
13.7 |
12.2 |
14.7 |
|
Apr-26 |
13.3 |
10.7 |
12 |
|
May-26 |
13 |
10.5 |
12.3 |
