Written answers
Tuesday, 17 May 2016
Department of Social Protection
Social Welfare Benefits Waiting Times
Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
565. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the processing times for decisions of first instance by scheme in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10546/16]
Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
A breakdown of the average time taken by the Department to award applications for social welfare payments, as of April 2016, is detailed in the following table.
The processing times provided in the table are calculated on the basis of the total time from the registration date of the claim to final award. The processing times vary by scheme. This principally reflects the fact that the legal eligibility conditions - such as means tests, family circumstances and medical status - are more complex for some schemes than for others.
Table: Average time to award claims - April 2016
| Scheme | Average time to award claims (weeks) |
|---|---|
| Jobseekers Benefit | 1 |
| Jobseekers Allowance | 2 |
| One-Parent Family Payment | 6 |
| State Pension Contributory (Domestic) | 7 |
| Widower’s and Surviving Civil Partners (Contributory) Pension | 3 |
| State Pension (Non-Contributory) | 13.5 |
| Household Benefits | 3 |
| Free Travel | 2 |
| Supplementary Welfare Allowance | 1 |
| Child Benefit (Domestic & Formerly Resident Abroad) | 3 |
| Child Benefit (EU Regulation) | 39 |
| Family Income Supplement (New claims) | 3 |
| Carers Allowance* | 19 |
| Disability Allowance* | 10 |
| Invalidity Pension* | 12 |
| Illness Benefit | 1 |
*The average time to award new applications which did not enter the appeals process.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
No comments