Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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593. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he will examine the case of an elderly couple (details supplied) where the husband is in receipt of a contributory old age pension and an increase for a qualified adult in respect of his wife; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34337/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has a commitment to an annual level of control reviews and operates an ongoing continuous schedule of control and review activity for those in receipt of a pension.

The objective is to ensure that customers on a pension, regardless of age, continue to receive their correct rate of payment over the lifetime of their claim. On review, claimants on a means tested payment or in receipt of a means tested allowance may have their weekly payment rate unchanged or adjusted upwards or downwards as appropriate, based on their up-to-date means assessment.

Reviews can arise from customer requests for a review of their claim, from targeted and random case selections, or where specific information comes to the attention of the Department. Factors such as length of time since last review, or where information is received from other agencies such as the Revenue Commissioners, or from members of the public, can also trigger control reviews.

My Department understands the many pressures faced by people and always seeks to ensure that reviews are processed quickly and efficiently. Each decision made following a review is open to a review and/or an appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals office.

The person concerned has been in receipt of the Increase for Qualified Adult allowance in respect of their spouse since 28 September 2006. The last review of this allowance was in June 2021 resulting in a reduced entitlement rate.

A review questionnaire issued to them on 6 March 2025 following random selection for review. A reminder letter issued on 6 May 2025. As no response was received, a further letter issued on 4 June 2025 to advise that payment would be stopped if the required information was not provided. The allowance was stopped with effect from 13 June 2025.

I have arranged for a further reminder to issue to the person concerned giving a further 7 days to respond. On receipt of the completed form, a review outcome will issue in writing to the person concerned.

Under current eligibility conditions, an individual must have at least 520 full-rate paid contributions in order to qualify for the standard State pension (contributory). 520 full-rate contributions equate to 10 years of full-rate insurable employment.

If a person does not qualify for the standard State pension (contributory) and has worked in a country with which Ireland has a bilateral agreement or in one or more EU countries, they may qualify for a pro-rata pension. To qualify for a pro-rata pension their social insurance record from one of these countries can be combined with their Irish insurance record to satisfy the qualifying conditions. I have arranged for an application form to issue to the spouse of the person concerned if they wish to apply for this pension.

If the spouse of the person concerned has provided full time care to incapacitated dependents for 20 years or more (1040 weeks), it is open to them to apply for long-term carers contributions. If eligible, the equivalent of paid contributions will be attributed to cover gaps in their contribution record. The periods of caregiving do not need to be consecutive. The quickest way to apply for long-term carers contributions is online at MyWelfare.ie.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.