Cash income and social welfare payments

Introduction

If you are applying for a social assistance payment you must satisfy a means test. All your sources of income (for example, cash income, employment, capital and maintenance) are assessed by the Department of Social Protection (DSP).  

However, under Social Welfare legislation certain items are not counted when your means are assessed for a social assistance payment. This document only explains cash income not included in the means test. More information on income not taken into account is available in our document on the means test.

Rules

The following cash income is not taken into account for all schemes except Family Income Supplement  (FIS),  Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) and Rent Allowance (Rent Allowance is not the same as Rent Supplement):

• Any payment made by DSP (except in the case of Jobseeker's Allowance. See 'Maximum Jobseeker's Allowance payment' below)
• Supplementary Welfare Allowance
• Income from property already assessed on its capital value
• Any payment corresponding to Child Benefit from another EU Member State
• Income from recognised non-profit making charitable organisations
• Mobility Allowance from the Health Service Executive (HSE) 
• Foster Care Allowance from the HSE
• Domiciliary Care Allowance
• Home Care Grant from the HSE
• Allowances under the Home Tuition Scheme from the Department of Education and Skills
• Grants to parents of children attending primary school in Gaeltacht areas, and income from providing accommodation to students studying Irish in Gaeltacht areas
• Any amount received as a training allowance while undergoing a course of rehabilitation training by an organisation approved by the Minister for Health
• Compensation awards to people who have contracted Hepatitis C or HIV from contaminated blood products, together with income from the investment of that money
• Compensation awards by way of the Residential Institutions Redress Board together with income from the investment of that money
• Compensation awards to persons who have a disability caused by Thalidomide together with income from the investment of that money
• €104 per year from certain Army pensions (including a British War Pension)
• PRSA contributions
• Back to Work Allowance, Back to Enterprise Allowance, Back to Education Allowance or Part-Time Job Incentive  payments to your spouse
• FAS course payment to your spouse (not including Community Employment CE)
• VTOS payment to your spouse
• Any repayments under the Nursing Home Repayments Scheme to the spouse of the person overcharged. 

Additional cash income may not be taken into account for individual social welfare payments. The Department of Social Protection provides more information on additional cash income not taken into account in the means test for social welfare payments.

Maximum Jobseeker's Allowance payment

Usually, any payment made by DSP is not taken into account in the means test for a social welfare payment. However, if one of a couple is claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JA) and the other is getting one of the social welfare payments listed below, the total amount paid to the couple cannot exceed the maximum amount paid to one person (including dependants) on one social welfare payment. However, you can choose the higher-rate payment as the primary payment to calculate your maximum amount.

• Illness Benefit
• Disablement Pension (when paid with Illness Benefit or Incapacity Supplement)
• Injury Benefit
• Invalidity Pension
• State Pension (Non-Contributory)
• State Pension (Contributory)
• State Pension (Transition)
• Jobseeker's Benefit
• Jobseeker's Allowance
• Pre-Retirement Allowance (PRETA)
• Farm Assist (FA)

More information on the maximum payment for Jobseeker's Allowance is available from DSP's website.

Married and cohabiting couples

A means test examines all your sources of income (for example, cash income, employment, capital and maintenance) to get your total means.

When the total means for a married or cohabiting couple is calculated, only half will be taken into account.

However, if you are getting Jobseeker's Allowance (JA), Pre-Retirement Allowance (PRETA), Farm Assist (FA) or Disability Allowance (DA) your means are only halved if your spouse/partner is getting certain social welfare payments, a HSE payment, or is on a FAS or VTOS course and getting an allowance in his/her own right. If your means are halved for JA, PRETA, FA or DA, you will not get an increase for a qualified adult but you will get a half-rate increase for each qualified child.

More information about married and cohabiting couples can be found in our document on the means test.