Latest news with #DepartmentofSocialProtection
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Business
- RTÉ News
Revenue writes to 70,000 pensioners over incorrect tax payments
The Revenue Commissioners has written to almost 70,000 pensioners over issues relating to incorrect tax payments. The retirees are among around 260,000 taxpayers who may have overpaid or underpaid tax for the year 2022. Revenue said the group includes about 68,000 people aged over 65, but it insisted it has not launched a campaign specifically aimed at pensioners. The correspondence outlines the steps which taxpayers should take to review their Preliminary End of Year Statement and file an income tax return. It said the vast majority of people, including most pensioners, pay the right amount of tax automatically through the PAYE system. "But where there are other income sources, such as a Department of Social Protection payment or private income, Revenue may need to adjust tax credits to reflect that." The Department of Social Protection does not take any tax from social welfare payments before they are paid out, as they are made gross to the recipient. It means that in cases where a person receives a social welfare payment, such as the State pension, and that person has another source of income, such as an occupational pension, they may owe tax. Pensioners whose sole income comes from the State pension are not impacted. Revenue said the correspondence outlines the steps which taxpayers should take and it said any underpayments are not due immediately and are usually collected gradually over four years. "The letters are not a demand, but part of our regular efforts to help people check if they have paid the right amount of tax, or if they are due a refund." "Any letters issued are data driven, proportionate, and accompanied by assistance channels." Revenue also said where there is an underpayment, taxpayers are "not required to make any immediate payment." "Instead, any underpayment will be collected through a reduction of tax credits in future years." The sums of money involved have not been disclosed.
Agriland
3 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
Fewer farmers in receipt of Farm Assist compared to 2024
There are currently just over 3,400 recipients of Farm Assist, the Department of Social Protection has confirmed. This compares with the end-of-year 2024 figure of just over 3,600, and 4,000 in 2023. Farm Assist is a means-tested income support specifically for farmers on low incomes. The government has provided almost €47 million for the scheme in 2025. To qualify for Farm Assist, you must be a farmer in Ireland, be aged between 18 and 66, and pass a means test. In a means test, the Department of Social Protection examines all sources of income. A recipient's income must be below a certain amount. Figures from the Department of Social Protection show that in 2024, of the 3,610 Farm Assist recipients, Co. Donegal had the highest number with 804. Co. Mayo had the second highest number with 515, followed by Co. Galway with 332 and Co. Cork with 239. A spokesperson told Agriland that the department "does not maintain data on the types of farming undertaken by Farm Assist recipients". They added that any future changes to the scheme, such as payment rate, "would have to be considered in a budgetary context, within the scope of the overall resources available for welfare improvements and with consideration to other social welfare schemes". Minister for Social Protection, Dara Calleary was asked in recent months by Sinn Féin TD Martin Kenny if there are plans to disregard farm income from environmental schemes such as ACRES for the purpose of Farm Assist applications. Under the Farm Assist means test, income from a range of agri-environmental schemes attract a disregard of €5,000, with 50% of the balance assessed as means. The amount disregarded was increased from €2,540, with effect from January 2023. "Further to a commitment in the Rural Development Policy 2021-2025, my department reviewed the means assessment disregards for Farm Assist in 2021 and the list of agri-environmental schemes that qualify for a disregard has been significantly expanded in recent years," the minister said. "ACRES was included in the disregard from April 2023. "In line with the recommendation contained in the review, I am committed to continuing to work with my colleague, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, to identify any additional schemes contained in Ireland's CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027 that could be considered for inclusion in the list of agri-environmental schemes which attract this disregard." The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) is seeking a number of changes to the Farm Assist scheme in Budget 2026. It is proposing that recipients of Farm Assist should receive credited social insurance contributions for pension purposes. The IFA has also proposed that the capital assessment disregard threshold is raised from the current €20,000 to €50,000, and that eligibility is extended beyond pension age, particularly for those with limited or no pension entitlement. The association also said that income from farm schemes and direct payments must "accurately reflect income needs". The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA) said that the current year's income should be used when assessing for the means test. "Year-to-year volatility in farming means that current incomes should be used in the Farm Assist calculations," the ICMSA said. The association said that the impact of participation in Farm Assist on pension entitlements must be addressed. "Farmers who did not pay their PRSI contributions in the years they received the aid find their pension benefits under threat," the association added.
Irish Independent
31-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Nearly one in five experienced income poverty between 2015 and 2023, study shows
A study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) also found that almost one-fifth (18pc) experienced income poverty in at least one year between 2015 and 2023. While the percentage of those at risk of poverty has gradually declined, lone parent families, single people and older adults living alone experienced a post-Covid spike. The rate of people at risk of poverty declined from 16pc in 2016 to 11pc in 2023. However, 18pc of individuals experienced income poverty in at least one year during that time period. The at-risk-of-poverty rate is the percentage of people with a household income below 60pc of the national median income. Lone parent families, large families and households with a working-age adult with a disability are at the most risk of poverty and deprivation, the new research shows. Basic deprivation implies that individuals are living in households that cannot afford adequate food, clothing, heating, or an occasional meal or drink out with family and friends. An average of 33pc of children in lone-parent families are being persistently deprived, with 21pc of them found to be at risk of poverty between 2016 and 2023. 'The longer people stay in poverty, the harder it is for them to escape' Material deprivation, which is the inability to afford essential goods and services, increased from 14pc in 2021 to 17pc in 2023. Inflation and the economic cycle were cited as two of the main reasons for this. Between 2016 and 2023, 22pc of people experienced deprivation at least once in two consecutive years, and almost half of these were in persistent deprivation. Households in the northern and western regions, people living with low-educated or unemployed household heads, and workless households were significantly more likely to experience transient and persistent poverty and deprivation. The report said that timely adjustments to social welfare payments, including pensions, 'are critical to protect vulnerable groups from inflation and economic disruptions'. Bertrand Maitre, co-author of the report, said: 'Research shows that the longer people stay in poverty, the harder it is for them to escape. This highlights the urgent need to tackle persistent poverty and to design policies that protect the most vulnerable groups from falling into long-term poverty.' The study was published in partnership with the Department of Social Protection.
RTÉ News
30-07-2025
- General
- RTÉ News
Lone parent families at 'highest risk of poverty'
Lone parent families, large families, and households with a working-age disabled adult face the highest risks of persistent at-risk-of-poverty and deprivation according to the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). New research published in partnership with the Department of Social Protection examined persistent income poverty and material deprivation between 2015 and 2023. Material deprivation is the enforced inability to afford two or more essential goods and services considered the norm for a basic standard of living. Material deprivation fluctuated with the economic cycle and inflation, increasing in the recent period from 14% in 2021 to 17% in 2023 according to the study. The study found 22% of people experienced deprivation at least once in two consecutive years between 2016 and 2023 and almost half of these were in persistent deprivation. People who are "at risk of poverty" relates to those who have have a household income below 60% of the national median income. Approximately 21% of children in lone parent families were persistently at-risk-of-poverty, between 2016 and 2023 and an average 33% of them were persistently deprived. On average, 5% of Irish people, were both at risk of poverty and deprived between 2016 to 2023 according to the report. It says the annual at-risk-of-poverty rate declined from 16% in 2016 to 11% in 2023. While the persistent at-risk-of-poverty rate declined from 10% in 2015-2016 to 7% in 2022-2023, the latter shows the share of the population who were at risk of poverty for two years in a row, according to the ESRI. Women were more likely than men to experience transient (i.e. for one year) and persistent material deprivation. Households in the northern and western regions, people living with low-educated or unemployed household heads, and workless households were significantly more likely to experience transient and persistent poverty and deprivation. The ESRI has suggested the implementation of targeted policy measures to support lone parents, large families, and households with a person with disabilities is essential to address their high risk of poverty. It added that "timely adjustments" to social welfare payments, including pensions, "are critical" to protect vulnerable groups from inflation and economic disruptions.
Irish Examiner
16-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Employers who 'behave badly' over pension scheme will be 'chased down'
Employers who try to force or dissuade their workers out of the newly-planned auto-enrolment pension scheme could face 'sanctions, penalties, and prosecutions', an Oireachtas committee has heard. Officials from the Department of Social Protection addressed TDs and senators on the scheme which is due to start from January 1, and said employers who 'behave badly' and try to reclassify workers to avoid paying pension contributions would be 'chased down'. Assistant secretary at the department, Tim Duggan, said: 'There are also provisions within the auto-enrolment act to discourage employers from behaving in a way that would coerce or seek to persuade employees from not engaging in auto-enrolment.' In the works for nearly a decade, auto-enrolment pensions will see all employees not already in an occupational pension scheme or similar arrangement, between the ages of 23 and 60 and earning €20,000, automatically enrolled in one. Similar schemes operate in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. Those who are auto-enrolled can opt out if they so wish, and can opt for higher or lower-risk retirement savings strategies within the scheme. The scheme, dubbed 'My Future Fund', will be phased in over a decade. In the first three years, both employers and employees will contribute 1.5%, before it rises in increments to 6% by year 10. At the same time, the State will top up each person's savings pot by €1 for every €3 they contribute. Mr Duggan said the rising incremental contributions will make it easier for employers to absorb the cost of contributing to the scheme, which comes at a time when many businesses are facing pressure on their costs from a variety of factors. 'We've had extensive engagement with all of these [business groups] over the last couple of years,' Mr Duggan said. 'Explaining the system, outlining the implications for them, and hearing those concerns that this is an additional cost. 'I've acknowledged it is an additional cost, but equally, over time, the cost impact of it will dissipate considerably. Over the next 10 years, wage inflation is going to be massively in excess of 6%. 'I've never seen a 10-year period where it hasn't been, so this is just an element of that wage inflation that's going to occur.' On lessons learned from other jurisdictions, the committee heard that many countries made the amount people would pay into these pensions too low. This is why the Irish scheme would gradually increase the contributions. Mr Duggan said: 'Ask any of the designers or operators of these schemes, they'll tell you it's the biggest mistake they made. They've a big problem with it now in the UK, 13 years in. 'In Australia, they took the view at the beginning they had to invest in low-risk conservative funds. The consequence of which is people didn't make any money in their pension pots.' In terms of the planned January start date, Mr Duggan acknowledged that payroll providers and employers had said it would be 'more helpful' than the now delayed September 2025 start date. He added that a communications campaign to make workers aware they may see a reduction taken from their payslips from January if they have been auto-enrolled will be ramped up in the coming months. Read More Auto-enrolment heralds a new era for pensions in Ireland
