John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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554. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the payments being made to persons categorised as self-employed; and the number receiving each payment. [22024/18]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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There are two schemes to assist people on certain social protection payments who wish to become self-employed, namely, the short term enterprise allowance (STEA) and the back to work enterprise allowance (BTWEA). The STEA provides immediate access to those who qualify for jobseekers benefit wishing to set up a business. Payment under the scheme is at the same rate and for the same duration as their entitlement to jobseekers benefit.

The BTWEA is designed to provide a monetary incentive for people who are on social welfare payments to develop a business while allowing them to retain a reducing proportion of their qualifying social welfare payment over two years – 100% in year one and 75% in year two.

At the end of April, there were 8,856 recipients of Back to Work Enterprise Allowance, and 348 recipients of Short-Term Enterprise Allowance.

As well as these supports, at the end of April there were 7,278 people in receipt of a Jobseeker payment (Jobseeker’s Benefit or Jobseeker’s Allowance) who indicated that they were previously self-employed.

Because ‘self-employment’ status or previous status is not relevant for entitlement to many other social welfare benefits, there is no ‘self-employed’ category for other benefits.