Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 September 2026
30. Deputy Edward Timmins asked the Minister for Social Protection if he consideration will be given to review the minimum 16 hours weekly worked hours to qualify for carer’s benefit; and the impact the current rules have for teachers who are not on full time hours. [67659/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraCarer's Benefit is a payment made by my Department to insured people who leave the workforce or reduce their hours to care for someone in need of full-time care and attention. There are currently 5,150 people in receipt of Carer's Benefit and expenditure on the scheme is estimated to exceed €76 million this year.
To qualify, a person must meet the PRSI and other statutory conditions of the scheme including a requirement to have been in insurable employment for at least 16 hours per week or 32 hours per fortnight. Contracted hours are a matter between an employer and employee.
In cases where a person does not meet the qualifying conditions for Carer's Benefit, they may instead qualify for the means tested Carer’s Allowance. In July, the income disregards were increased significantly to €1,000 for a single carer and €2,000 for a couple. These improvements mean that, for example, a carer in a two-adult household with an income of approximately €110,000 will still retain their full carers payment and even with an income of €138,000 will retain a partial payment.
Any proposals for further changes to this condition would need to be considered in an overall budgetary context taking into account the impact on the Social Insurance Fund.
