Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, United Left)
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184. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if the Christmas bonus still applies to the same social welfare payments as in 2014; and if she will provide a list of the payments it applies to. [37518/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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A 75% Christmas bonus will be paid in early December to over 1.2 million long-term welfare recipients including pensioners, lone parents, jobseekers, carers and people with disabilities at a cost of €197 million. The bonus applies to the same social welfare payments as in 2014, with the addition of the Back to Work Family Dividend.

The bonus will be paid to the following schemes:

- State Pension (Contributory)

- State Pension Non-Contributory

- Widow(er)s' Pension (Con)

- OI Death Benefit

- Jobseeker's Allowance

- One Parent Family Payment

- Widow(er)s’ Pension (non-con)

- Deserted Wife’s Allowance

- Deserted Wife's Benefit

- Supplementary Welfare Allowance

- Direct Provision Allowance

- Farm Assist

- Pre-Retirement Allowance

- Community Employment

- Rural Social Scheme

- Tús

- Job Initiative

- Gateway

- JobBridge

- Back to Work Allowance

- Back to Education Allowance

- Back to Work Family Dividend

- Disability Allowance

- Blind Pension

- Partial Capacity Benefit

- Invalidity Pension

- OI Disablement (Workmen's com, medical care)

- Carer's Allowance

- Carer's Benefit

- Domiciliary Care Allowance

- Guardian's Payment (non-con)

- Guardian's Payment (Contributory)

- Magdalen Commission Scheme

In order to be eligible for the bonus, recipients of Jobseeker's Allowance, Supplementary Welfare Allowance and Direct Provision Allowance must be in receipt of this payment for 15 months. In the case of jobseekers on Back to Education Allowance (BTEA) and JobBridge, the recipient must been in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment for 15 months prior to starting the scheme, or have 15 months duration in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment combined with their time on BTEA or JobBridge.