Disability payments and work

Impact of FÁS Allowances and Rehabilitative Work on Disability Payments

If you are getting getting a disability payment, for example, Disability Allowance, Blind Pension, Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit, you may be allowed to participate on a FÁS training course or Community Employment scheme or do some other work that is rehabilitative or therapeutic.

First you must get written approval from the Department of Social Protection to do rehabilitative work and retain your disability payment.  For Disability Allowance, Blind Pension and Invalidity Pension there is no minimum period of time for which you must have been getting your payment before you can apply.  However, in general you must be at least 6 months on Illness Benefit before you will be considered for approval.

How a FÁS training allowance or earnings from rehabilitative employment  (including Community Employment) affects your disability payment, and any secondary benefits you may be getting, depends on how much your  training allowance or earnings are and whether you are getting a social assistance (means-tested) or a social insurance (PRSI based) disability payment.

Rules

Social assistance (means-tested) disability payments

Disability Allowance and Blind Pension are means-tested disability payments.  To qualify for a means-tested payment your income from various sources is examined to see does it fall below a certain level. Some earnings from rehabilitative type work are not taken into account in the assessment of your means and will not affect your payment.

For Disability Allowance and Blind Pension, earnings up to €120 from rehabilitative type work are not taken into account in the assessment of means.

If your earnings from rehabilitative work is above €120 per week, 50% of your earnings between €120 and €350 will not be taken into account in the Disability Allowance or Blind Pension means test.

However, all earnings over €350 will be assessed as income and your entitlement to Disability Allowance will be reduced in line with the appropriate reduced rates of payment for Disability Allowance.  If you have no other means, the maximum amount you can earn is €430 (2010) and still keep an entitlement to the minimum payment of €3.50 (2010).

If you are getting Blind Pension any earnings over €350 will also be assessed as income and your entitlement to Blind Pension will be reduced in line with the appropriate reduced rates of payment for Blind Pension. If you have no other means, the maximum amount you can earn is €435.10 (2010) and still keep an entitlement to the minimum Blind Pension of €3.50 (2010).

While no restriction has been placed on the number of hours you may work you should use a maximum of 20 hours a week as a guideline.

Social insurance payments

Invalidity Pension and Illness Benefit are social insurance (PRSI based) payments.  If you are getting Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit and take up rehabilitative work you can keep your payment in full, but you may have to pay income tax on your total income. 

For Illness Benefit the rehabilitative work must not exceed 20 hours a week. 

In practice the Department also operates a limit of 20 hours work a week for people getting Invalidity Pension.

FÁS training courses

If you are a trainee on Disability Allowance or Blind Pension you will receive a FÁS training allowance at the same rate as your social welfare payment and an additional training bonus of €31.80.  Your social welfare payment is suspended when you are on the training course. You can continue to get your social welfare payment when you leave the training course.

If you are a trainee on Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit, you will get a standard FÁS training allowance of €196 (2010) plus your full social welfare payment including any increases you get for your dependents. 

Other benefits you may be getting are affected as follows:

Secondary Benefit	Disability Allowance	Blind  Pension	Invalidity Pension	Illness Benefit
Fuel Allowance	Retain	Retain	Lose	Lose
Rent Supplement	Retain	Retain	May be affected	May be affected
Household Benefits Package	Retain	Retain	Retain	People getting Illness Benefit do not qualify for the Household Benefits Package
Medical Card	Retain	Retain	May lose	May lose
Mobility Allowance	Retain	Retain	Retain	Retain
Blind Welfare Allowance	Retain	Retain	Retain	Retain

 

FÁS Community Employment

A single adult Community Employment allowance is €216 (2010). This is paid even if you have dependants.  As this exceeds the €120 rehabilitative earnings threshold, half of your allowance between €120 and €216 (2010) is assessed as means and your Disability Allowance or Blind Pension payment is reduced.  Invalidity Pension and Disability Benefit are paid in full but you may be liable for Income Tax. 

Other benefits you may be getting are affected as follows:

Secondary Benefit	Disability Allowance	Blind   Pension	Invalidity Pension	Illness Benefit
Fuel Allowance	Retain	Retain	Lose	Lose
Rent Supplement	Will be affected	Will be affected	Will be affected	Will be affected
Household Benefits Package	Retain	Retain	Retain	People getting Illness Benefit do not qualify for the Household Benefits Package
Medical Card	Retain	Retain	Retain	Retain
Mobility Allowance	Retain	Retain	Retain	Retain
Blind Welfare Allowance	Retain	Retain	Retain	Retain

 

Other Rehabilitative Employment

If your earnings from rehabilitative employment exceeds the €120 rehabilitative earnings threshold, Disability Allowance and Blind Pension payments are reduced.  However, only 50% of earnings between €120 and €350 will be taken into account in the Disability Allowance or Blind Pension means test.

Invalidity Pension and Illness Benefit are paid in full but you may be liable for Income Tax. 

Other benefits you may be getting are affected as follows:

Secondary Benefit	Disability Allowance	Blind   Pension	Invalidity Pension	Illness Benefit
Fuel Allowance	Retain	Retain	Lose	Lose
Rent Allowance	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120
Household Benefits Package	Retain	Retain	Lose if you are earning more than €100	People getting Illness Benefit do not qualify for the Household Benefits Package
Medical Card	May be affected	May be affected	May be affected	May be affected
Mobility Allowance	Retain	Retain	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120*	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120*
Blind Welfare Allowance	Retain	Retain	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120*	It will be affected if you are earning more than €120*

*If your earnings from rehabilitative employment exceed the €120 rehabilitative earnings threshold, Mobility Allowance and Blind Welfare Allowance payments are reduced.  However, only 50% of earnings between €120 and €350 will be taken into account in the means test for Mobility Allowance and Blind Welfare Allowance.
If you are earning less than €120 and your Mobility Allowance or Blind Welfare Allowance is reduced you should consider appealing this decision.