Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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566. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if there is flexibility around carer’s allowance means testing for couples who are partners, considering they cannot avail of tax breaks in the same way as married couples. [23353/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The system of social assistance supports provides payments based on an income need.  The means test plays a critical role in determining whether or not an income need arises as a consequence of a particular contingency – such as disability, unemployment or caring.  This ensures that the recipient has a verifiable income need and that resources are targeted to those who need them most. 

Significant improvements to the means test for Carer’s Allowance, which were announced as part of Budget 2022, are due to take effect from June.

The general weekly income disregard for Carer's Allowance will be increased from €332.50 to €350 for a single person, and from €665 to €750 for a couple.  This will enable more carers with modest incomes to become eligible for the scheme, and those currently in receipt of a reduced payment may now receive a higher payment.

The capital disregard will also be increased from €20,000 to €50,000.  This will allow carers who have accumulated relatively modest savings, often to provide care for a loved one, to retain an entitlement to Carer's Allowance.

In addition to these changes to the means test, all recipients of a weekly carers payment saw their payment increase by €5 per week from the beginning of January.  Those with children will also have benefitted from an increase in the qualified child payment - €2 increase for children under the age of 12, and €3 for children aged 12 and over - bringing these payments to €40 and €48 per week respectively.

Cohabiting partners are treated in the same manner as married couples for social welfare means testing purposes, and as such can avail of the disregards outlined above on the same basis.

Any further changes to the means test for Carer’s Allowance would have to be considered in an overall policy and budgetary context.