Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability

The Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability is a grant for people with a physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual disability. It provides funding so you can improve how you enter and move around your home.

You can use this grant to make your home more accessible by:

• Adding ramps or other ways to access your home
• Extending your home to create more space, for example, adding a downstairs bedroom
• Adding accessible bathroom facilities, such as an accessible shower or a ground-floor bathroom or toilet
• Installing a stair lift
• Installing grab rails
• Installing a fixed track hoist. (This is a ceiling or wall-mounted track with a sling attached to it, which means you can be mechanically lifted and moved to different places along the track).

The grant does not cover VAT on the work. However, you can apply to Revenue for a VAT refund for any appliances that you need and the cost of installing them.

The maximum grant you can get is €30,000 or 95% of the cost of the work (whichever is less). The amount of money you get depends on your household income for the previous tax year.

If your household income is less than €30,000, you may get 95% of the cost of the works up to the maximum grant amount of €30,000.

If your house is less than 12 months old, the grant will not be more than €14,500.

As household income increases, the percentage of the costs paid by the grant gradually reduce from 95% to 30%. So, if you have a household income of between €50,001 and €60,000, you will qualify for 30% of the costs.

You may not get the maximum grant, even if you qualify for it. This is because the grant is paid by your local authority and depends on what funding they have available. They will decide whether they can pay you the full grant, or a percentage of the grant.

You will not get a grant if your gross annual household income is over €60,000.

The grant is available to people with a gross household income of up to €60,000 a year.

Your local authority will assess your total household to find out:

• If you qualify for the grant
• The level of funding you will get

How is my income assessed?

Your total household income from the previous tax year is assessed to find out if you qualify and how much of a grant you will get.

Household income includes:

• Your annual gross income (income before tax)
• Your spouse or partners annual gross income
• The annual gross income of any other adults living in the household who are aged over 23 years if they are in full-time education, or over 18 if they are not in full-time education

Income not taken into account

The following income is not taken into account when calculating your household income:

• €5,000 for each member of the household who is under 18
• €5,000 for each member of the household who is aged between 18 and 23 and is in full-time education
• €5,000 if the person receiving the grant is being cared for by a relative on a full-time basis
• Child Benefit
• Working Family Payment
• Domiciliary Care Allowance
• Carer's Support Grant
• Carer's Benefit and Carer's Allowance (if the carer's payment is made for the person who needs the grant)
• Fuel Allowance
• Household Benefits Package
• Living Alone Allowance
• Foster Care Grant

Does my home qualify?

Your home qualifies if it is:

• Privately owned (you or your family own it)
• Rented from a landlord and you have the landlord’s permission to make the changes. (The tenancy must also be registered with the Residential Tenancies Board).
• Provided by an approved housing body (AHB)
• A communal residence (accommodation where people live together in group homes)

You must live in the property as your primary home when the work is completed.

What tax information do I need for the grant?

Your tax affairs and Local Property Tax (LPT) must be in order to qualify for the grant.

You will also need to get tax clearance from Revenue, if you get a grant of more than €10,000. You can apply for tax clearance online or by post.

Download an application form (pdf) or contact your local authority and ask for one to be posted to you.

The form has a section that must be completed and signed by a doctor.

You may also need professional advice from a building contractor when filling in the section about the work you want to get done and how much you think it will cost.

Send the completed form to your local authority along with any documents that are needed, such as:

• Proof of your household income for the previous tax year
• Proof that the Local Property Tax (LPT) for the home is in order
• A letter from the landlord giving you permission to get the work done, if you are renting
• An occupational therapist's (OT) report if you are using the grant to add an extension, get a stair lift or make a big change to how a room is being used.

The local authority can arrange for the OT assessment, or you can employ an OT yourself and get up to €250 of the cost from the local authority as part of the grant. You can search for an OT on the website of the Association of Occupational Therapists Ireland.

The application form gives full details of the documents you will need as proof.

When your local authority receives your application, they will:

• Check your application and see if you qualify for the grant
• Send a technician to visit your home to make sure that it is possible to do the work and that the adaptations are suitable for your needs
• Contact you to let you know if your application has been approved and how much you have been approved for
• Ask you to send them a quote for the work, your contractor’s tax reference number and your bank account details

How are applications prioritised?

Your application is prioritised according to how urgent your medical needs are. There are 3 levels of priority.

Priority 1 is given to people who:

• Are terminally ill or are dependent on family or a carer
• Would be able to return home from hospital or residential care if they had the adaptations to their home

Priority 2 is given to people who:

• Are mobile but need help to access their bedroom or bathroom
• Find it harder to be independent without the adaptations

Priority 3 is given to people who are independent but need adaptations to improve their quality of life.

What if my application is unsuccessful?

If your application for the grant is unsuccessful or if you are unhappy with the local authority’s decision, you can appeal the decision.

You must appeal to the local authority in writing within 3 weeks of the decision, explaining why you are appealing.

Someone in the local authority who was not involved in the original assessment will assess your appeal and contact you with a result. This could take up to 6 weeks.

If your application is unsuccessful or if you need different adaptations to your home, you may qualify for other grants or schemes, see below.

The grant will not be paid if you start work before you get grant approval. However, it is expected that the work will start within 6 months of your grant approval. If this does not happen, the local authority may allow a time extension. The grant is paid when the work is completed.

The proposed works should include the installation of smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, if you don't already have them in your home.

Choosing a contractor

Before choosing a contractor to do the work you should:

• Ask friends, family, and neighbours who have done building work recently, for advice and recommendations on contractors
• Your local authority may have a list of contractors who work in your area
• Get a number of quotes and compare them
• Request and check the contractor’s references
• Formalise your relationship with your contractor by drawing up a contract detailing the required works, prices, timescales, payment terms and warranties

Getting the work done safely

Under the Regulations governing safety, health and welfare at work, you must ensure that construction work on your home is carried out by competent people. Read more, including a guide for homeowners (pdf) and some Frequently Asked Questions, on the website of the Health and Safety Authority.

If you do not qualify for the Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability, or it is not suitable for the work you need to get done, you may qualify for other grants or schemes.

If you just need basic work to make your home more accessible, you can apply for the means-tested Mobility Aids Grant Scheme.

If you are an older person and you need essential repairs to your home, the Housing Aid for Older People Grant may be more suitable for you. These schemes are administered by local authorities.

VAT refunds are available on the cost of aids and appliances used by people with disabilities, as well as on the cost of installation and adaptation work.

Energy efficiency

If you plan to improve the energy efficiency of your home, you may qualify for the:

• Better Energy Homes Scheme
• Better Energy Warmer Homes Scheme
• National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme