Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2005

Respite care grant — improvements to entitlement conditions.

7.—(1) The Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting the following after Part IV:

“PART IVA

RESPITE CARE GRANT

Interpretation.

196A.—(1) In this Part—

‘carer’ means a person ordinarily resident in the State who has attained the age of 16 years and who—

(a) is in receipt of or entitled to carer's benefit or carer's allowance, or

(b) is a prescribed relative within the meaning of section 163 in respect of whom an allowance is payable under section 167, or

(c) is providing full-time care and attention to a person who is in receipt of an increase of disablement pension under section 57 in respect of the need for constant attendance, or

(d) resides with and has provided, is providing or is likely to provide full-time care and attention for such periods and on such date as may be prescribed to a relevant person, or

(e) subject to the conditions and in the circumstances that may be prescribed, does not reside with but has provided, is providing or is likely to provide full-time care and attention for such periods and on such date as may be prescribed to a relevant person;

‘institution’ means a hospital, convalescent home or home for people suffering from physical or mental disability or ancillary accommodation, nursing home for the care and maintenance of dependent elderly people or any other similar establishment providing residence, maintenance or care;

‘relevant person’ means a person who is ordinarily resident in the State and is so incapacitated that he or she requires full-time care and attention within the meaning of subsection (2).

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a relevant person shall be regarded as requiring full-time care and attention where—

(a) the person is so incapacitated that he or she requires from another person—

(i) continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout the day in connection with normal bodily functions, or

(ii) continual supervision in order to avoid danger to himself or herself,

and

(b) the nature and extent of the person's incapacity has been certified in the prescribed manner by a medical practitioner.

(3) The Minister may make regulations specifying the circumstances and conditions under which a person is to be regarded as providing full-time care and attention to a relevant person.

Entitlement to respite care grant.

196B.—(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (5), an annual grant (in this Act referred to as a ‘respite care grant’) in the amount of €1,000 shall be payable to a carer in respect of each relevant person in his or her care and only one such annual grant shall be payable in respect of a relevant person.

(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), a grant shall not be payable to a carer where—

(a) he or she engages in employment or self-employment, or

(b) he or she is entitled to or in receipt of unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance, or

(c) he or she is a person to whom article 58 of the Social Welfare (Consolidated Contributions and Insurability) Regulations 1996 ( S.I. No. 312 of 1996 ) applies in respect of proven unemployment, or

(d) he or she is entitled to or is in receipt of an allowance for domiciliary care of children under section 61 of the Health Act 1970 (other than where the carer is also in receipt of or entitled to carer's benefit or carer's allowance), or

(e) the relevant person is resident in an institution.

(3) The Minister may by regulations provide that a carer may engage in employment or self-employment subject to the limitations in relation to the hours or remuneration that may be prescribed and subject to the conditions and in the circumstances that may be prescribed.

(4) The Minister may by regulations provide for entitling to a respite care grant a carer who would be entitled thereto but for the fact that the relevant person is temporarily resident in an institution or temporarily residing with another person.

(5) Regulations made under this section may provide for the date in each year on which a respite care grant shall become payable to a carer.

Medical examination.

196C.—(1) A relevant person in respect of whose full-time care and attention a carer is entitled to a respite care grant shall attend for or submit to any medical or other examination that may be required in accordance with regulations.

(2) Regulations under subsection (1) may provide for disqualifying a person from receiving a respite care grant where the relevant person, in respect of whose full-time care and attention the grant is payable, fails without good cause to attend for or to submit to any medical or other examination that may be required in accordance with those regulations.”,

(b) by repealing sections 82F and 168A,

(c) by substituting “IV, IVA,” for “IV,” in each place where it occurs in the following provisions—

(i) subsections (1) and (8) of section 212 (as amended by section 23 of the Act of 1998),

(ii) paragraph (b) of section 265 (as amended by section 7 of the Act of 1996),

(iii) subsection (1) of section 277 (as amended by section 7 of the Act of 1996), and

(iv) Reference 1 in Table 2 to the Third Schedule (as amended by section 24 of this Act),

and

(d) in section 247(2), by inserting the following after paragraph (c):

“(ca) Part IVA (Respite Care Grant),”.

(2) The Principal Act is amended—

(a) by substituting the following for subsection (1) (as amended by section 4 of the Act of 2004) of section 82F:

“(1) Subject to subsection (2), a respite care grant in the amount of €1,000 shall be payable to a carer in respect of each relevant person in his or her care.”,

and

(b) by substituting the following for subsection (2) (as amended by section 4 of the Act of 2004) of section 168A:

“(2) Subject to subsection (3), a respite care grant in the amount of €1,000 shall be payable to a carer in respect of each relevant person in his or her care.”.