Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh (Kildare South, Sinn Fein)
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1225. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the length of time each social welfare appeal takes, in tabular form; what his Department is doing to reduce these times; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59666/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The current average processing time for appeals up to end of Quarter 3 2025 is 21.2 weeks. The average processing time for appeals processed in 2024 was 23.5 weeks. The breakdown of processing times for each individual scheme for 2024 can be found in the 2024 Social Welfare Appeals Office Annual Report which is available on the Social Welfare Appeals Office website www.gov.ie/en/social-welfare-appeals-office/collections/news-and-publications-from-the-social-welfare-appeals-office/#annual-reports

The Chief Appeals Officer has put in place measures to deal with the increase in appeals received during 2024. 20 additional Appeals Officers were assigned during December 2024 and January 2025.

In addition, new Social Welfare Appeals Regulations (S.I. No. 744 of 2024) came into effect from Monday, 28 April 2025. The purpose of these regulations is to modernise and streamline the social welfare appeals process, providing greater clarity, improved consistency, and more defined timeframes. It is expected that this will reduce the number of appeals on hand and the length of time it takes for appeals to be processed and decided.

The Chief Appeals Officer continues to monitor the number of appeals on hand and the appeal processing times, and every effort is made to reduce the time taken to process an appeal. However, the drive for efficiency must be balanced with the competing demand to ensure that decisions are consistent and made in accordance with the provisions set out in primary legislation and regulations.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.