Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 109: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the estimated increase in the cost of welfare claims in 2007 arising from the entitlement of EU migrant workers to the childcare supplement and child benefit; the level of increase in applications for such benefits that has been evident since the beginning of 2006; his views on these increases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22994/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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EU Migrant workers have an entitlement to Child Benefit and other "Family benefits" including Early Childcare Supplement (ECS) under EU Regulation 1408/71. Where a national of an EU state with a family is working in Ireland, the worker is entitled to payment of such benefits, even if the children of the worker are resident in the worker's home country.

EU migrant workers in Ireland with an entitlement to family benefits are in one of two categories, those who have their families living with them in Ireland and those whose families reside in their home country. Applications for family benefits from EU migrant workers who come to live in Ireland with their families are dealt with under domestic legislation. Entitlement to Child Benefit is based on the applicant satisfying the Habitual Residency condition and the child being ordinarily resident in Ireland.

Currently there are just under 30,000 EU nationals in receipt of Child Benefit for 53,000 children who are resident with them in Ireland. Of these the majority of recipients — some 16,500 — are UK nationals, with a further 8,000 recipients from the ten EU accession states.

EU nationals who come to work in Ireland but whose families remain in their home country have an entitlement to claim Family Benefits in Ireland under EU regulation 1408/71. At the start of 2006, Child Benefit was in payment under EU regulations for 650 families, in respect of 1320 children, resident outside of the Republic of Ireland. Some 90% of these children are resident in the UK. Currently there are some 950 families, with 1700 children receiving Child Benefit and resident outside Ireland. The majority of these are UK residents.

The number of claims to Child Benefit and Early Child Supplement in respect of non resident EU nationals has, since the start of 2006, averaged close to 300 per week and is currently running at 350 per week compared to 20 per week in the same period in 2005.

As the Deputy will appreciate, it is not possible at this point to forecast the position for the remainder of 2006 or 2007 with accuracy. This will depend on future immigration flows and indeed the number of non-national immigrants who decide to return home. This "churn" effect is difficult to quantify but it appears that some numbers of EU migrant workers may be staying in Ireland for relatively short periods of time. This will mean that those entitled to Child Benefit in 2006 may not be so entitled in 2007 or subsequent years. Best estimates at present would indicate that the numbers of applications may decline somewhat over the coming months as the backlog of applications dries up. New applications received will be from those EU nationals recently arriving to work in Ireland.

It is likely that not every claim received for Child Benefit and ECS will be entitled to benefit. Additionally, some will only have an entitlement to payment of a reduced rate of child benefit as a "supplement" payment, (the supplement represents the difference between the rate of family benefits payable in the country of origin and the rate payable in the country of employment). If the majority of claims received in 2006 were to have an entitlement to Child Benefit, the total potential cost of Child Benefit this year for non resident EU national children could be in the region of EUR30 million or 1.5% of the overall Child Benefit budget of €2.04 billion this year.

The Early Childcare Supplement will be payable to those families in receipt of Child Benefit from my Department with children under 6 years of age. If the number of claims were to continue at current levels, the number of non-resident children qualifying for the ECS payment could approach some 12,000 by the end of 2006. This would accrue a cost of EUR9.5 million in 2006.