Written answer
Budget 2027
The Government is progressively increasing carer payments and income disregards, but gave no specific 2027 measures; abolishing the means test could cost €600 million annually.
105. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Social Protection in the context of Budget 2027, he will consider further reform of Carer’s Allowance, including increasing the weekly rate and further easing or removing the means test in recognition of the significant contribution made by family carers; and the estimated cost of each of these measures. [67387/26]
Comment on this
The Programme for Government commits to progressively increasing weekly carer payments and to significantly increasing the income disregards for Carer's Allowance, with a view to phasing out the means test over the Government term. Significant progress has already been made in delivering on these commitments.
In January 2026, there was a €10 increase in the maximum personal rate of Carer's Allowance and Carer's Benefit to €270 and €271, respectively, for carers aged under 66. This compares to €254 for most weekly payments for persons age under 66 years. For Carers aged 66 and over, the maximum weekly rate increased to €308.
As well as rate increases, the Government has prioritised reform of the Carer's Allowance means test. As part of Budget 2026, the weekly income disregard increased to €1,000 for a single person and €2,000 for a couple. As a result of these changes, almost 2,700 carers received an increase in their payment in July and virtually all recipients are now receiving the maximum rate.
Based on administrative data, the Department has previously estimated a cost of approximately €600 million to abolish the Carer’s Allowance means test. However, this cost increases to a potential €3 billion per annum if everyone who self-declared as a carer in Census 2022 were to qualify. It is acknowledged that the latter figure is a high-level estimate only.
I am not in a position at this point to reveal any information regarding potential Budget measures. Discussions are ongoing and, while not everything we want to do can be done in one year, I can assure the Deputy, that Government is committed to moving forward on our Programme for Government commitments to Carers.