Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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154. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if there is specific legislation defining the term "reasonable" with regard to reasonable expenses taken into account when assessing the means of a person for jobseeker's allowance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2291/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I understand from the Deputy’s office that the background to this question is that a farmer in the Deputy’s constituency was refused his jobseeker’s allowance claim on the basis of means, and was advised that “reasonable expenses” had been allowed in his means assessment.

Social welfare legislation provides that all income and property of the claimant and his or her spouse/partner is assessable for means assessment purposes of social assistance schemes. The legislation underpinning the means assessment of the jobseeker’s allowance and farm assist schemes is set out in the Part 2 of Schedule 3 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Actof 2005 (as amended).

The reference to expenses in legislation can be found in Table 2 in Schedule 3 of the 2005 Act (as amended) which lists 19 items that are excluded from the assessment of income. Number 17 in this list is “any expenses necessarily incurred in carrying on any form of self-employment”.

There is no exhaustive list of all expenses allowed in self-employed cases, since expenses vary with the nature and extent of the self-employment. However, the following are the main allowable expenses in most instances, as set out in the means guidelines available on the Departmental website:

- Materials (supplies costs)

- Motor running costs (portion applicable to business)

- Depreciation of machinery or equipment

- Insurance relating to the business

- Telephone (portion applicable to business)

- Lighting and Heating (for business and not domestic use)

- Advertising

- Bank Charges

- Stationery

- Van Leasing

- Labour Costs

- Pension plan

- Any other costs associated with running the business.

- Class S PRSI contributions (where paid or payable).

Lower income farmers may be entitled to a payment under the farm assist scheme. It should be noted that Budget 2017 contained a number of improvements to the means testing arrangements of the Farm Assist scheme, which may be of interest to your constituent. From March, there will be an enhanced assessment of means from farming, whereby 70% of farm income (after allowing for expenses necessarily incurred) will be assessed as means (down from 100%). Furthermore, additional income disregards for claimants with children will be introduced.