Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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475. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if local councils carry out means testing and calculation for social housing eligibility based on net or gross income; if the maximum household income will be increased to reflect the rising cost of living; and if local councils remove persons from the social housing list who are over the HAP limit. [63226/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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To be eligible for Housing Assistance Payment (HAP), a household must qualify in the first instance for social housing support and be placed on a local authority housing list.

Applications for support are assessed the relevant local authority according to eligibility and need criteria set down in Section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 (as amended).

Income eligibility is assessed on an applicant household's net income. The Regulations prescribe maximum net income limits for each local authority, while income is defined and assessed according to a standard Household Means Policy. If deemed eligible, the local authority will determine the most appropriate social housing support, including Housing Assistance Payment (HAP), for the applicant household.

A household’s qualification for support may be reviewed at any time at the discretion of a local authority or where the local authority becomes aware of changes in the household's circumstances. It will also be assessed at the point of allocating support. Households deemed to exceed the prescribed limits will be removed from the housing list.

Housing for All – A New Housing Plan for Ireland was published in September 2021 and, as part of a broad suite of social housing reforms, committed to reviewing income eligibility for social housing. The review, which examined inter alia the efficiency of the current banding model and income limits applicable to local authorities, was completed in Q4, 2021. Following consideration of the review’s findings and recommendations, I intend to make a decision on proposed changes shortly.