James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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214. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason for deductions to pensions (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23329/24]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The person concerned is in receipt of state pension (contributory) (SPC) at the maximum weekly rate of €277.70. They are also in receipt of an increase for a qualified adult (IQA) in respect of their spouse at the weekly rate of €70.00.

The person concerned has weekly deductions of €41.60 from their SPC for the recovery of an overpayment totalling €95,152.52 which was incurred during the period 21/7/2010 to 26/04/2016 while claiming jobseeker's allowance. The current outstanding overpayment balance is €80,241.67. Deductions will continue until the overpayment is fully recovered.

Persons who have been overpaid social welfare payments have a liability to refund the overpayment as they have been in receipt of a payment to which they were not entitled. Where an overpayment is raised, my department makes every effort to recover the amount overpaid. Recovery is sought over a period without imposing undue financial hardship on the person.

The decision to raise an overpayment was appealed to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office in 2016. An Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, decided to disallow the appeal of the person concerned.

The IQA is a means-tested payment, payable to a claimant whose spouse, civil partner or cohabitant is being wholly or mainly maintained by them, and where that qualified adult’s personal means from any source does not exceed a means test income limit.

Where a qualified adult has weekly means of less than €100, the maximum rate of IQA is payable. Where their weekly means are over €100 and not more than €310, a tapering reduced rate of IQA is payable. If the qualified adult has means of more than €310 per week, this exceeds the means limit and there is no entitlement to an IQA payment.

The IQA was reviewed on 15 February 2024. As the spouse of the person concerned has weekly means of €289.20, it was decided that the IQA was payable at the reduced weekly rate of €70.00. The person concerned was notified of this decision on 30 April 2024.