Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

Child benefit may be paid in respect of every child under the age of 16 who is ordinarily resident in the State. Payment can be extended to the 19th birthday if the child is in education or incapable of self-support. The benefit is paid to the qualified person with whom the child resides and the qualified person must satisfy the habitual residence condition.

The requirement to be habitually resident in Ireland was introduced as a qualifying condition for certain social assistance schemes and child benefit with effect from 1 May 2004. It was introduced in the context of the Government's decision to open the Irish labour market to workers from the ten new EU member states, without the transitional limitations that were imposed at that time by most of the other member states. The effect of the condition is that a person whose habitual residence is elsewhere would not normally be entitled to social welfare assistance or child benefit payments on arrival in Ireland.

EU regulations provide that EEA nationals who are migrant workers, that is, those who are employed or self-employed in this country, or who are receiving the jobseeker's benefit since being in employment here, are entitled to payment of family benefit in respect of their families, including those who reside in another member state. Under these regulations, the family members are treated as if they are habitually resident in Ireland for the purpose of child benefit.

A survey was done by my Department on new child benefit claims decided between January and the end of August 2007, in which period a total of 28,542 claims was decided. Of these 3,430, or 12%, required particular examination of the habitual residence condition. Some 90% of these satisfied the condition and only 341, or 10%, were refused owing to its not being satisfied. In effect, just over 1% of the total number of new child benefit claims failed to satisfy the habitual residence condition. Those who are refused child benefit are mainly people whose claim to asylum has not yet been decided, others who have not obtained a work permit or people who have had only a minimal or no attachment to the workforce since coming to Ireland. In the case of families in the asylum process, direct provision, funded by the Department of Justice Equality and Law Reform, is available, ensuring that the rights and welfare of the children are protected.

I am satisfied the habitual residence condition is achieving its intended purpose, allowing access to our social welfare schemes to persons who are genuinely and lawfully making Ireland their habitual residence while preventing unwarranted access by persons who have little or no connection with the State.

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