Introduction
The Household Benefits Package is a package of allowances which help you
with the costs of running your household. The package is available to everyone
aged over 70 and to people under age 70 in certain circumstances.You must be
living permanently in the State (this means full-time and all year round) and
you must SAFE register when requested to do so by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social
Protection. SAFE registration, and the subsequent issue of a Public Services Card, have been introduced to protect people’s identity and to help save time and effort in accessing a range of public services. You must authenticate your identity by undergoing SAFE registration, when requested to do so by the Department. Only one person in a household can qualify for the package at any
time. You must show that you are the registered consumer at the address for
which you are applying for the Household Benefits, for example, by providing a
utility bill. If you are renting your home, your landlord must provide written
confirmation that you are a tenant (including the MPRN
or GPRN
of the address you are living at) and confirm that you are paying your own
energy bills.
There are various commercial websites that allow you to compare energy
prices. The Commission for Energy Regulation
(CER) accredits cost comparison websites if they meet certain standards.
You can check accredited
websites on energycustomers.ie.
The
Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection has published information on what to do if you
are in financial difficulty with your energy bills.
Keeping well and warm in winter
Coping with cold weather can be difficult especially if you are older or
have a disability or a long-term illness. The website, wellandwarm.ie, gives information
and advice about the supports available to help you and your household keep
well and warm during the winter.
Allowances
There are 2 allowances in the Household Benefits Package:
Allowance 1
- The Electricity Allowance or
- Natural Gas Allowance or
- Cash Electricity Allowance or
- Cash Gas Allowance
Allowance 2
- The Free Television Licence
The Telephone Allowance was discontinued from 1 January
2014.
Allowance 1: Electricity/Gas Allowance
If you have an electricity or natural gas supply, you can only choose either
the Electricity Allowance or the Natural Gas Allowance.
Electricity Allowance
The Electricity Allowance is paid either as a cash payment directly to you
or a cash credit paid against your electricity/ or gas bill to you each month.
(This only applies to Bord Gais and Electric Ireland only customers.).
Electric Ireland customers
Following approval of your application for an Electricity Allowance, the
Department notifies Electric Ireland, who will apply the allowance, including
any backdated credit, on your next or subsequent bill. The allowance is paid
directly to Electric Ireland. You must pay in the normal way for any
electricity you use above the allowance.
Other electricity providers
If your electricity provider is not Electric Ireland, your
Electricity Allowance is paid directly to you to use towards your electricity
bill. In this case, the allowance can be paid into your bank account or at your
local post office. If you are using a prepaid supplier you will also get a cash
payment.
If you change electricity supplier, it is your responsibility to notify the
Department of this change. You must provide proof of your new energy provider
(utility bill in your name) from the change date.
Cash Electricity Allowance (paid to people living in self-contained
accommodation)
You may qualify for a monthly Cash Electricity Allowance of €35 (equal to
€1.15 per day) if you are living in self-contained accommodation (a flat or
apartment), and:
- You have your own electricity slot meter
or
- There are a number of separate electricity meters operating from one
meter from an electricity provider and the registered consumer of
electricity is a landlord
or
- There are no separate meters, but the registered consumer of electricity
at your address is a landlord.
Your landlord must provide written confirmation (including the MPRN
or GPRN
of the address you are living at) that you are a tenant and are paying your own
energy bills.
If you change electricity supplier, it is your responsibility to notify the
Department of this change. You must provide proof of your new energy provider
(utility bill in your name) from the change date.
The Cash Electricity Allowance is paid on the first Tuesday of each month to
an account in a financial institution, for example, a bank or, if you have a
Public Services Card (or social services card), through your local post office.
(Note that if you are being paid through a post office, using a PSC or social
services card, you have 90 days to collect your payment.)
Natural Gas Allowance
Depending on your supplier the Natural Gas Allowance of €35 (equal to
€1.15 per day) can be paid as a cash credit on your gas bill or on the first
Tuesday of each month to an account in a financial institution or a post
office.
The Allowance does not cover the cost of installing a natural gas supply to
your home.
If the Allowance is paid as a credit on your gas bill, the Department
notifies your gas provider, who will apply the allowance, including any
backdated credit, on your second gas bill after that date.
You must satisfy some conditions to qualify for the Natural Gas Allowance.
You must show proof that you are the registered consumer on the energy bills
(MPRN/GPRN). If you are renting and the utility bill is in the landlord’s
name, your landlord must provide written confirmation (including the MPRN
or GPRN
of the address you are living at) that you are a tenant and are paying your own
energy bills.
If you change energy supplier
It is very important to note that if you change energy supplier, it is your
responsibility to notify the Department of this change. You must provide proof
of your new provider (utility bill in your name) from the change date.
Cash Gas Allowance
If your home is not connected to an electricity or natural gas supply but
you satisfy the conditions of the scheme, you can get the Cash Gas Allowance of
€35 (equal to €1.15 per day).
You can also claim a Cash Gas Allowance if you use gas which is not
delivered through the national grid. For example, in some areas a gas tank may
provide gas to a number of individually-metered households. The Cash Gas
Allowance is paid on the first Tuesday of each month to an account in a
financial institution or a post office.
Carry forward of gas or electricity units
Your monthly allowance of €35 (equal to €1.15 per day) can be carried
forward without restriction and can be drawn down at any stage, including if
you wish to switch to a different energy provider.
Allowance 2: Free Television Licence
Once you qualify for the Household Benefits Package, you become eligible for
a Free Television Licence from the next renewal date of your television
licence. You must select the Television Licence option on the form when you
apply for the Household Benefits package.
When you qualify for the Household Benefits Package and have been awarded a
Free Television Licence, the Department issues you with a TV licence, and also
notifies An Post of your entitlement to a free licence for as long as you are
entitled to the Household Benefits Package.
Rules
You qualify for the Household Benefits Package if you are aged 70 or
over. You do not need to be getting a State pension and the package is
not means tested. You also qualify if you are getting Carer's Allowance, whether on a full
or half-rate payment, but you must be providing full-time care and living with
the person you are caring for. Everyone getting the Household Benefits package
must also meet general conditions (See 'General conditions for the Household
Benefits Package' below).
You can also qualify for the Household Benefits Package if
you meet one of the following conditions
and live alone or only with excepted
people (see 'Excepted people' below):
1. You are between 66 and 70 and are getting:
2. You are under 66 and are getting:
- Disability
Allowance
- Invalidity Pension
- Blind Pension
- Incapacity Supplement or Workmen's Compensation with Disablement Pension
(for at least 12 months)
- An equivalent Social Security Pension/Benefit from a country covered by
EU Regulations, or from a country with which Ireland has a Bilateral Social
Security Agreement
3. You are caring for a person who is getting Constant Attendance
Allowance
4. You are aged between 66 and 70 and satisfy a
means test (see 'The means test' below).
Excepted people are:
- A qualified adult (your spouse/civil partner/cohabitant is a qualified
adult if you are getting an increase for a qualified adult with your
payment or you would get an increase but for the fact that they are getting
a social welfare payment in their own right)
- Dependent child(ren) under the age of 18 or under the age of 22 if in
full-time education (a certificate from the school or college must be
supplied for those aged 18 or over)
- A person who is so incapacitated as to require constant care and
attention for at least 12 months (medical certification may be required)
- A person(s) who would qualify for the allowance in his/her own right (for
example, a person getting an State Pension)
- A person who is providing you or someone in your household with constant
care and attention if you or that person is so incapacitated as to require
constant care and attention for at least 12 months (medical certification
may be required). People in employment for more than 15 hours per week or
people getting Jobseeker's Benefit or Jobseeker's Allowance cannot be
accepted as providing constant full-time care and attention.
General conditions for the Household Benefits Package
- You must be permanently living in the State. This means on a full time,
all- year round basis. The allowances do not apply if you live in a nursing
or retirement home where the accommodation is not fully self-contained.
- You must be the only person in your household who gets the
allowances.
- You must be the registered consumer of electricity or gas if you are
applying for an Electricity/Natural Gas Allowance.
- You must SAFE register when requested to do
so.
Illness and hospital stays
You are considered to be living at your permanent address while you are
having medical treatment in hospital provided your hospital stay is less than
13 consecutive weeks. You may need to provide confirmation of your hospital
stay.
Concession for widowed people or surviving civil partners aged between 60
and 65
If you are widowed or a surviving civil partner aged between 60 and 65 and
your late spouse or civil partner was getting any Household Benefit allowance
from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection and, before his or her death, you were
permanently living together, you can qualify for the Household Benefits
Package. If you were under 60 when your spouse or civil partner died this
concession applies when you turn 60.
You must be getting:
- Widow's, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) or
(Non-Contributory) Pension
- One-Parent Family Payment (Widows/Widowers)
- Widow's, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's Pension under the Occupational
Injuries Benefits Scheme
- An equivalent Social Security Pension/Benefit from a country covered by
EU Regulations or from a country with which Ireland has a Bilateral Social
Security Agreement
- An ordinary Garda Widow's Pension from the Department of Justice and
Equality .
You may have to show documentary evidence proving that your late spouse or
civil partner was receiving an allowance under the Household Benefits Scheme.
Concession for people transferring from Invalidity Pension, Disability
Allowance or Blind Pension
If you are receiving Invalidity Pension, Disability Allowance or Blind
Pension and you are receiving any Household Benefit allowance you may keep it
if you transfer to another primary payment from the Department of Social
Protection. This does not apply if you transfer to Jobseeker's
Benefit/Allowance, Illness Benefit, One-Parent Family Payment and Carer's
Benefit or if your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant claims for you as a
qualified adult on their payment.
Note that in general if you transfer from any primary payment to become a
qualified adult on your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant’s payment you
lose your entitlement to the Household Benefits Package (it will be paid to
your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant if they qualify).
The means test
If you are aged between 66 and 70 and are not
receiving a qualifying payment, you must satisfy a means test.
The means test involves calculating your appropriate weekly means limit.
This limit is based on the current maximum rate of State Pension (Contributory)
including increases for age, living alone, and adult/child dependants.
Your weekly income limit consists of the maximum rate of State Pension
(Contributory) plus €100. Your weekly income limit is then compared to your
gross weekly means as assessed in a means test.
If your weekly means are less than or equal to your weekly income limit, you
satisfy the means test and qualify for the Household Benefits Package.
If you are applying for the Household Benefits Package on the basis of the
means test, a separate means test questionnaire will be posted to you for
completion.
Change of circumstances
You must notify the Department if:
- You change address
- You change energy provider
- You are under 70 years of age and your household composition changes
- You move into residential care
If you change address and you still satisfy the conditions for the Household
Benefits Package, you must re-apply for the package.
Rates
Household Benefit Package rates in 2017
| Allowance |
|
| Electricity Allowance |
€35 monthly (€1.15 per day) |
| Cash Electricity Allowance |
€35 monthly (€1.15 per day) |
| Natural Gas Allowance |
€35 monthly (€1.15 per day) |
| Cash Gas Allowance |
€35 monthly (€1.15 per day) |
| Television Licence |
Once you qualify for the Household Benefits Package, you become
eligible for a Free Television Licence from the next renewal date of
your television licence (provided you applied for this allowance on
your Household Benefits package form). |
Where to apply
To apply, fill in form HB1 (pdf). You can get
more information about the Household
Benefits Package on the Department's website.
Return your completed application form to the Household Benefits Package
section:
Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection
Social Welfare Services
College Road
Sligo
Ireland
Opening Hours:This office does not offer a service to personal callers. All queries must be made using the online enquiry form, by telephone or in writing.
Tel:(071) 915 7100
Locall:1890 500 000
Homepage: http://www.welfare.ie/
You can email the Household Benefits Package section using the secure enquiry
form. If you wish to talk to someone face-to-face about your entitlements,
you can visit your local Citizens Information Centre, Intreo Centre or Social
Welfare Branch Office.