Brendan Ryan (Dublin Fingal, Labour)
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508. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of persons transitioning from the one parent family payment scheme who successfully applied for the first time under the family income supplement scheme (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9796/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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There were a total of 4,066 customers who commenced Family Income Supplement (FIS) after transitioning from One Parent Family payment at the end of 2015.

A person on OFP with one child would receive a payment of €217.80 per week if they have no means. If they are no longer entitled to OFP they would move to Jobseeker’s Transitional Payment (JST) and would receive the same rate as OFP. However, if the person concerned commenced employment and was working a minimum of 19 hours per week (or 38 hours per fortnight), they may qualify for FIS. If the person was working the required hours and receiving the minimum wage of €9.15, this would equate to €173.85 per week. They may also be entitled to 60 per cent of the difference between the weekly family income and a weekly income limit for the family size. In this example, the person would be entitled to an additional payment of €202.29, bringing the weekly income to €376.14.

Accordingly, it is more beneficial for the person concerned to be employed and claiming FIS rather than staying on JST.