Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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428.To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if, with regard to a non-habitual Irish citizen who has returned to Ireland for health reasons in order to avail of their family’s support, considering the habitual residence requirement for most payments and supports where the individual is seriously ill, unable to work, and does not have savings, she will outline what payments, grants, supports and loans are available for application for non-habitual citizens in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24589/24]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Habitual residence is a condition that must be satisfied in order to qualify for certain social welfare payments and applies to everyone, irrespective of nationality. The habitual residence condition (HRC) consists of two parts, both of which need to be satisfied. The first part of HRC requires the person to have an unconditional, established right of residence in this country i.e. they are not precluded from getting social welfare payments. The second part of HRC requires an assessment of a person’s situation and intentions using specific factors outlined in the social welfare legislation. The term habitually resident is not defined in law, but infers a degree of permanence in relation to where a person lives. Further information on the habitual residence condition can be found at: www.gov.ie/en/publication/170e70-habitual-residence-condition/

My department provides a range of illness and disability payments which are either based on PRSI contributions made, such as illness benefit and invalidity pension, or include habitual residence conditionality as part of the assessment e.g. the disability allowance scheme. If the person in question has not been resident in Ireland it is unlikely that they will have the necessary PRSI contributions to qualify but may qualify if they can demonstrate that they satisfy the HRC and other conditions required in relation to the scheme being sought.

In addition to illness and disability payments, the supplementary welfare allowance scheme also ensures a safety net within the wider social welfare system and can provide financial assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents.

The Deputy may also wish to contact the Department of Health with a view to clarifying their ‘ordinarily resident’ policy/conditionality and the supports/benefits provided by that Department.

I trust this clarifies the Deputy's question. If he would like to forward the specific details of the case to my Department, my officials will follow up accordingly.