Publication
Operational Guidelines: Supplementary Welfare Allowance Scheme
From Department of Social Protection
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Social Protection
Published on
Last updated on
Description Of Scheme
The Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) Scheme came into operation on 1 July 1977. It was introduced to replace the home assistance service for persons whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants. SWA can consist of a basic payment and/or a supplement in respect of certain expenses a person may not be able to meet.
Purpose Of The SWA Scheme
The main purpose of the scheme is:
Legislation
The legislation governing the scheme is incorporated in
Administration
The SWA scheme was formerly administered on behalf of the Department by the Community Welfare Services division of the Health Service Executive (HSE).
From 1 October 2011, the community welfare services and the community welfare officers providing it were formally transferred to the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection. The service and the staff are now part of the Department of Social Protection.
Qualifying Conditions
Subject to the legislation governing the scheme, every habitually resident person in the State whose means are insufficient to meet his/her needs and the needs of his/her qualified adult or child(ren) shall be entitled to Supplementary Welfare Allowance.
There are two categories of claimants for basic SWA:
Disqualification
Under the legislation a number of categories are specifically excluded from receiving assistance. These are people in full-time work, people in full-time education and people involved in trade disputes. The qualified spouse and qualified child(ren) of a person involved in trade dispute are not excluded from SWA for the period of the strike.
A person will not be regarded as being in full-time work where he/she is employed for less than 30 hours a week.
Supplements
The SWA scheme provides for a variety of supplements, see the following separate guidelines:
Rates Structure
Basic SWA is made up of a personal rate for the applicant and additional amounts for any qualified adult and/or qualified child(ren). The current rates of payment are set out in Booklet SW 19.
The following is a brief summary of how means are assessed. The effective Guidelines used in the calculation of means are those issued to the Department’s representatives.
Income from Employment or Self-Employment
A claimant may work under 30 hours per week in insurable employment and still qualify for SWA.
Gross income less PRSI and reasonable travel expenses is taken into account for the means test.
Other necessary expenses may be allowed in the case of self-employment.
Property & Capital
Section 35 of Social Welfare & Pensions Act 2007 provides for an amendment in the manner that capital is assessed for the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme. Property/Savings will be assessed on a weekly basis as follows:
Disregard first 5,000 of capital value of property/savings
Assess next 10,000 @ 1 per 1,000
Assess next 25,000 @ 2 per 1,000
Assess remaining capital over 40,000 @ 4 per 1,000
Note - The assessment of capital using the formula outlined above does not apply to Exceptional Needs Payments or Urgent Needs Payments. For these payments, if the claimant has capital resources or availability to access alternative resources sufficient to meet the need it would be expected that the claimant provide for the need from the source.
Non-assessable means
You should contact the department's Community Welfare Service at your local office.
You should apply for Supplementary Welfare Allowance to the department's Community Welfare Service at your local office as soon as the need arises. You must fill in a Supplementary Welfare Allowance claim form (pdf). To help process your claim, you should have the following:
SWA Appeals
You have the right to appeal against a decision if you are not satisfied with the outcome of your claim. You can appeal to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office. The Social Welfare Appeals Office deals with appeals relating to basic SWA and SWA supplements.