S.I. No. 199/2023 - Social Welfare (Temporary Provisions) Regulations 2023


Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 28th April, 2023.

I, HEATHER HUMPHREYS, Minister for Social Protection, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 4 (amended by section 10 of the Social Welfare Act 2020 (No. 30 of 2020)) and section 292 (amended by section 8 (1) of and schedule 1 to the Social Welfare Act 2017 (No. 38 of 2017)) of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 (No. 26 of 2005), with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, hereby make the following Regulations:

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Temporary Provisions) Regulations 2023.

Definitions

2. In these Regulations—

“Principal Act” means the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 ;

“Principal Regulations” means the Social Welfare (Consolidated Claims, Payments and Control) Regulations 2007 ( S.I. No. 142 of 2007 );

“relevant week” means—

(a) in relation to illness benefit, partial capacity benefit or back to work family dividend, the period commencing on 17 April 2023 and expiring 23 April 2023,

(b) in relation to jobseeker’s allowance, or farm assist, the period commencing on 19 April 2023 and expiring on 25 April 2023,

(c) in relation to jobseeker’s benefit, jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed), or jobseeker’s benefit or jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) payable in accordance with article 52HA of the Principal Regulations, the period commencing on 20 April 2023 and expiring on 26 April 2023,

(d) in relation to disability allowance, the period commencing on 26 April 2023 and expiring on 02 May 2023,

(e) in relation to carer’s benefit, invalidity pension, one-parent family payment (other than one-parent family payment payable in respect of a widow, a widower or a surviving civil partner), jobseeker’s allowance payable in accordance with section 148A of the Principal Act, a relevant payment under section 178(1) of the Principal Act or carer’s allowance, the period commencing on 27 April 2023 and expiring on 03 May 2023, and

(f) in relation to disablement pension, death benefit payable in accordance with Chapter 13 (other than section 84) of the Principal Act, State pension (contributory), widow’s (contributory) pension, widower’s (contributory) pension, surviving civil partner’s (contributory) pension, guardian’s payment (contributory), State pension (non-contributory), blind pension, widow’s (non-contributory) pension, widower’s (non-contributory) pension, surviving civil partner’s (non-contributory) pension, guardian’s payment (non-contributory) or one-parent family payment in respect of a widow, a widower or a surviving civil partner, the period commencing on 28 April 2023 and expiring on 04 May 2023.

Temporary variation of rates of certain social welfare payments

3. (1) This article applies to a person who is, or becomes, entitled to—

(a) a payment specified in article 4 of these Regulations in respect of the relevant week,

or

(b) domiciliary care allowance in respect of the period commencing on 1 April 2023 and expiring on 30 April 2023.

(2) In the case of a person to whom this article applies, the specified payment payable to that person in respect of the relevant week shall be increased by €200.00.

(3) A person shall not be entitled to an increase in accordance with sub-article (2) of this article in respect of more than one payment specified in article 4 of these Regulations.

Specified payments

4. The following payments are specified for the purposes of article 3(1)(a) of these Regulations—

(a) a relevant payment within the meaning of section 178 of the Principal Act;

(b) back to work family dividend;

(c) blind pension;

(d) carer’s allowance;

(e) carer’s benefit;

(f) death benefit payable in accordance with Chapter 13 (other than section 84) of the Principal Act;

(g) disability allowance;

(h) disablement pension;

(i) farm assist;

(j) guardian’s (contributory) payment;

(k) guardian’s payment (non-contributory);

(l) illness benefit in the case of a person whose aggregate period in receipt of this payment, is not less than 312 days;

(m) invalidity pension;

(n) jobseeker’s allowance in the case of a person whose aggregate period of unemployment, including periods in receipt of Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment and any continuous period in receipt of jobseeker’s benefit, or jobseeker’s allowance, is not less than 12 months of unemployment;

(o) jobseeker’s benefit or jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) in the case of a person whose aggregate period of unemployment, including periods in receipt of Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment and any continuous period in receipt of jobseeker’s benefit, jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed), or jobseeker’s allowance, is not less than 12 months of unemployment;

(p) jobseeker’s benefit or jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) payable in accordance with article 52HA of the Principal Regulations;

(q) one-parent family payment;

(r) partial capacity benefit;

(s) State pension (contributory);

(t) State pension (non-contributory);

(u) surviving civil partner’s (contributory) pension;

(v) surviving civil partner’s (non-contributory) pension;

(w) widow’s (contributory) pension;

(x) widow’s (non-contributory) pension;

(y) widower’s (contributory) pension;

(z) widower’s (non-contributory) pension.

The Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform consents to the making of the foregoing Regulations.

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GIVEN under my Official Seal,

5 April, 2023.

PASCHAL DONOHOE,

Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.

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GIVEN under my Official Seal,

24 April, 2023.

HEATHER HUMPHREYS,

Minister for Social Protection.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

These Regulations provide for a once-off bonus payment of €200.00 to recipients of social welfare payments and domiciliary care allowance during the month of April 2023.

The bonus payment applies to recipients of the following social welfare payments—

(a) back to work family dividend;

(b) blind pension;

(c) carer’s allowance;

(d) carer’s benefit;

(e) death benefit under the Occupational Injury Benefit scheme payable to widows, widowers, surviving civil partners, orphans and dependant parents;

(f) deserted wife’s benefit, and deserted wife’s allowance;

(g) disability allowance;

(h) disablement pension;

(i) farm assist;

(j) guardian’s (contributory) payment;

(k) guardian’s payment (non-contributory);

(l) illness benefit in respect of an aggregate period of not less than 312 days

(m) invalidity pension;

(n) jobseeker’s allowance in respect of a period of unemployment of at least 12 months;

(o) jobseeker’s benefit in respect of a period of unemployment of at least 12 months;

(p) jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) in respect of a period of unemployment of at least 12 months;

(q) jobseeker’s benefit for claimants over 65 years of age;

(r) jobseeker’s transitional payment;

(s) one-parent family payment;

(t) partial capacity benefit;

(u) State pension (contributory);

(v) State pension (non-contributory);

(w) widow’s, widower’s and surviving civil partner’s (contributory) pension;

(x) widow’s, widower’s and surviving civil partner’s (non-contributory) pension.