Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein)
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884. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if his Department notifies holders of a free travel pass a minimum of one month prior to expiry of their free travel pass, requesting persons to renew their travel pass if they want to continue to use their free travel pass. [29185/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Free Travel scheme is available to people over 66 years and to people in receipt of certain social welfare payments who are under 66 years. From 29th July 2024, Free Travel is also available to persons from age 17 to 66 who are medically certified as unfit to drive for a period of at least 12 months. Free Travel recipients must be permanently resident in the State.

The scheme provides free travel on most CIE public transport services, Luas, Local Link and over 70 private commercial operators. Free travel is also available on cross border journeys and, for those aged 66 or over, within Northern Ireland.

At the end of April 2025, there were 1.13 million recipients; and the total number of beneficiaries increases to over 1.87 million when spouse and companion passes are included.

Prior to the Covid 19 pandemic, letters issued to customers 90 days in advance of the expiration of the Free Travel Public Services Card (FT PSC), to advise them to get their card renewed before it expired. This letter was stopped during the pandemic due to the closure of my Department's offices at the time. An agreement was put in place at the time with the National Transport Authority and the private operators, which remains in place, to accept expired FT PSC's on their services.

My Department has recently restarted issuing letters advising customers of the expiration for their FT PSC and the options available to renew. Starting with those aged over 70, over 150,000 of these letters have issued since the beginning of March 2025. It is planned to continue this until all those with expired FT PSC's have been issued with a letter advising of the need to renew their expired FT PSC. When that process is completed, customers will then be advised on an ongoing basis that the expiration of their FT PSC is approaching and the options available to renew.

The expiry date is printed on the front of every FT PSC. It is open to any customer with a FT PSC which is already expired, or is due to expire within the next 3 months, to have their FT PSC renewed.

The easiest way to renew a FT PSC is online at www.MyWelfare.ie. For any person who is unable to avail of the online service and wishes to renew their FT PSC in person, they should contact their nearest Intreo/PSC Centre.

I hope this clarifies the position for you.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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885. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when a decision will be made on an application for invalidity pension for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29206/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Social Welfare Appeals Office is a service of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.

I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, has decided to allow the appeal of the person concerned by way of a summary decision. The person concerned will be notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision in the coming days.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Brian Brennan (Wicklow-Wexford, Fine Gael)
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886. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the carer's allowance payment for a person (details supplied) is to cease following the means review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29217/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Carer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that, as a result, they require that level of care.

Means are any income belonging to the carer and their spouse/civil partner/cohabitant including property (except their own home), or an asset that could bring in money or provide them with an income. The means test for CA has been significantly eased over the years and is now one of the most generous means tests in the social welfare system.

I confirm that the person concerned has been in receipt of CA since 6 November 2014 in respect of a first care recipient and since 3 December 2020 in respect of a second care recipient.

Once claims are in payment, my Department periodically reviews them to ensure that there is continued entitlement.

A means review was initiated on 18 November 2024 and it was determined that the means of the person concerned had exceeded the statutory limit. The person concerned was notified of this decision in writing on 24 April 2025. They were also notified of their right to have the decision reviewed (where further information is available) or to appeal the decision to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

A review was initiated on foot of correspondence received from the person concerned on 1 May 2025. Following this review, the deciding officer determined means of €408.88 and the amount of CA payable was €43.50 per week from 22 May 2025. The person concerned was notified of this decision in writing on 22 May 2025.

A subsequent review was initiated on foot of further correspondence received on 23 May 2025 and, following this review, the Deciding Officer determined means of €394.56 and the amount of CA payable is €58.50 per week from 22 May 2025.

There have been a number of significant improvements made to the means test for Carer's Allowance in recent years. As part of Budget 2025, on Thursday, 3 July 2025, the weekly income disregards for CA will increase from €450 to €625 for a single person, and from €900 to €1,250 for carers with a spouse/partner.

Based on these changes, the person concerned has been assessed with weekly means of €219.56 with the amount of CA payable increasing to €233.50 per week on 3 July 2025. The person concerned was notified of this decision in writing on 28 May 2025.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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887. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he will review correspondence (details supplied); if he will expedite the application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29239/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Carer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that, as a result, they require that level of care.

An application for CA was received from the person concerned on 25 July 2024.

It is a condition for receipt of CA that every claimant shall furnish such certificates, documents, information, and evidence as may be required for the purposes of deciding their claim. A request to provide additional information issued to the person concerned on 1 August 2024. As the person concerned failed to supply all of the information requested, the claim was disallowed.

The person concerned was notified of this decision in writing on 24 September 2024. They were also notified of their right to have the decision reviewed (where further information is available) or to appeal the decision to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

A review was initiated on foot of correspondence received on 12 March 2025. Following this review, the person's claim was awarded from 15 August 2024. The first payment will issue to the nominated bank account of the person concerned on 5 June 2025. The person concerned was notified of this decision in writing on 28 May 2025.

I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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888. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to provide an update on plans to abolish the carer’s allowance means test; and when this change is expected to be implemented. [29245/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Carer's Allowance is the main scheme by which my department provides income support to carers in the community. There are currently 101,426 people in receipt of Carer's Allowance. Expenditure in 2025 is estimated to be over €1.24 billion.

Carer’s Allowance aims to provide income support to those whose earning ability is greatly impacted by their caring responsibilities, ensuring ongoing care for those in need.

The Programme for Government has set out a timeline which commits to significantly increasing the income disregards for Carer’s Allowance in each Budget with a view to phasing out the means test during the lifetime of the Government.

There have been a number of significant changes made to the Carer’s Allowance means test in recent years. From July, there will be a further increase which will see the weekly income disregard rise from €450 to €625 for a single person, and from €900 to €1,250 for carers with a spouse or partner. This amounts to cumulative increases to the disregards of €292.50 and €585 respectively since June 2022.

These increases make the scheme accessible to more people and may increase payment rates for those currently on a reduced rate. A carer in a two-adult household with an income of approximately €69,000 will still retain their full carers payment. The same carer with an income of €97,000 will retain a partial payment. Before the disregards were increased in June 2022 these figures stood at €37,000 and €60,000 respectively for a carer in a two-adult household couple.

It is important that we make progress in a way that is sustainable, and which balances the allocation of the available budgetary resources each year across all priorities. This includes funding services to other vulnerable groups. That is why we have committed to a measured and phased approach over a number of budgets.

Finally, it should be noted that my department also provides other supports for carers which are not based on a means assessment. These include the Carer’s Support Grant, Carer’s Benefit and Domiciliary Care Allowance.

I trust that this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.

Liam Quaide (Cork East, Social Democrats)
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889. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the social welfare supports available to purchase bottled water due to consistent boil water notices in their homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29261/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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My Department does not have a scheme to fund the purchase of bottled water due to consistent boil water notices for homes as this is a matter for the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and Uisce Éireann.

The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage provides funding to maintain and improve our water supply infrastructure, such as pipes, filtration and disinfection systems, while Uisce Éireann, previously known as Irish Water, is responsible for secure, safe, and sustainable water services in Ireland.

I trust that this clarifies the position.

Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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890. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if his Department will review its agreement with the Department of Education to label all home tutors as self-employed and not employees of the Department of Education in light of the Supreme Court decision in Karshan. [29319/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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It is my understanding that the Department of Education, under an arrangement with the Revenue Commissioners in 2015, placed home tutors on a payroll system to facilitate the payment of PAYE/PRSI/USC in a convenient manner, even though they continued to be regarded as self-employed.

Scope Section has examined the status of individual home tutors on a number of occasions previously and has determined that they are engaged under a contract for services (self-employed) and that the appropriate PRSI class is class S.

However, any worker who has concerns in relation to their employment status can contact the Department’s Scope section. This section determines employment status and the correct class of pay-related social insurance (PRSI).

I trust this clarifies matters for the Deputy.

Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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891. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection for an update on a PRSI matter (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29332/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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PRSI is a compulsory contributions based system where an employed or a self-employed contributor pays contributions into the Social Insurance Fund and gains entitlement to benefits based on those contributions. PRSI is charged on an individual basis where each person builds up their insurance record and, hence, their entitlement to benefits over time.

However, there are certain schemes, involving specific contingencies, such as widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's (contributory) pension, that allow a person to qualify for benefit based on their own or their spouse/partner's contributions.

In relation to the state pension (contributory), a person currently requires 2,080 reckonable contributions for the full rate of the payment, while 520 contributions are needed to qualify for any payment. Although a person who does not qualify for the state pension (contributory) in their own right cannot gain entitlement to this payment based on their spouse or partner’s contributions, their spouse or partner, if in receipt of this pension payment, may be entitled to an extra amount called an increase for a qualified adult. This payment can be paid directly to the spouse or partner.

Allowing a spouse or partner to gain additional contributions in the manner proposed in the Deputy's question would be a fundamental recasting of the social welfare system which would have significant cost implications. Accordingly, there are no plans to change this aspect of the current system.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.