Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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929. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of people claiming children’s allowance in 2025 and the estimated cost of providing a double payment in August 2025 to parents. [29836/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Child Benefit is a monthly payment to families with children up to the age of 16 years. The payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their 19th birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. It is paid in respect of almost 1.3 million children.

Budget 2025 provided for two Child Benefit double payments to be paid before the end of 2024. As a result, double Child Benefit payments issued to families on November 5th and December 3rd 2024. Each of these double payments were paid to approximately 678,000 recipients in respect of approximately 1,227,000 children, at an estimated cost of €371.4 million.

The Department's schemes are kept under review, particularly in the context of the Budgetary process, but there are no plans for further double payments this year.

However, expenditure on the scheme is currently estimated at over €2.2 billion for 2025, with a monthly estimated average of €183.3 million.

The provision for a double payment in the month of August 2025 would therefore be estimated at €366.6 million.

I trust this clarifies the position.