Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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135. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will urgently review cases whereby victims of domestic and coercive abuse who are accessing refuge services but who do not meet the criteria for IPAS/IPO status and who have not yet applied or received a stamp 4 status within Ireland, can access a weekly income instead of having to apply for exceptional needs’ payments which, while helpful, is not guaranteed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [58820/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Primary responsibility for the development and provision of services to support victims of domestic violence rests with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.

The accommodation needs of victims of domestic violence are met through a joined-up service delivery model provided by Tusla with the close involvement of housing authorities nationwide and the support of the Department of Social Protection through the provision of rent supplement.

The supplementary welfare allowance scheme is the safety net within the overall social welfare system in that it provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents.

The basic supplementary welfare allowance provides immediate assistance for those in need who are awaiting the outcome of a claim or an appeal for a primary social welfare payment or do not qualify for payment under other state schemes. This assistance is subject to the person having the right to reside and satisfying the Habitual Residence Condition.

Persons granted refugee status are entitled to the same social welfare benefits as an Irish citizen including access to a basic supplementary allowance weekly payment. Any person who is residing in the state without any official status should contact their local immigration registration office or the International Protection Office, if appropriate, in order to regularise their position.

Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments to help meet expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to exceptional and urgent needs payments and certain supplements to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from the customer’s own resources, and which are deemed to be necessary.

This is a demand-led scheme and there is no budget cap. Payments are made at the discretion of the officers administering the scheme, taking into account the requirements of the legislation, and all the relevant circumstances of the case in order to ensure that the payments target those most in need of assistance. Exceptional and urgent needs payments are not subject to the Habitual Residence Condition so can be provided, where needed, to assist those who do not have a right to reside in Ireland.

Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to an additional needs payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.