Rent Supplement and changes to your circumstances

If your circumstances change while you are getting Rent Supplement you may have your payment increased or reduced or you may no longer be eligible for it. The amount of Rent Supplement you get depends on various factors – including your income, savings, earnings, household composition and the current local rent limits.

Your Rent Supplement payment is calculated to ensure that your income is not less than the basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) rate for your circumstances (for example, €230 for a single person over 24 and €384 for a couple) minus a minimum contribution of €30 (or €40 for a couple). If your income increases above this amount, your Rent Supplement payment may be reduced.

Your Rent Supplement claim is reviewed regularly (generally every 6 months). When your claim is reviewed you will be asked to fill out a Rent Supplement Review Form. You should return the form as soon as possible to the officer dealing with your claim to make sure that there is no delay to your payment.

You should always tell the Department of Social Protection (DSP) immediately (see ‘How to apply’ below) if there are any changes to your means. You should also inform the DSP if there are changes to the means of other members of your household, or to the number of people living in your household.

This document outlines what happens to your Rent Supplement payment in some common situations.

If you or your partner gets full-time work:

In general people working full-time (defined as 30 hours or over a week) are not eligible for Rent Supplement. Claims from self-employed people are assessed on the individual circumstances of the case and you may be asked to show that you are working less than 30 hours a week.

If you get full-time work and you have been accepted as being in need of accommodation under the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) by your local authority, you may be able to keep your Rent Supplement (provided you have been unemployed or not in full-time employment for at least 12 months before you start work). If you are working over 30 hours a week in self-employment or if you are getting the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance you must be deemed eligible for the RAS scheme by your local authority to continue to get Rent Supplement.

However, you will be reassessed for Rent Supplement and your income from work will be taken into account. As a result of the reassessment you may or may not continue to qualify for Rent Supplement. If you do qualify for Rent Supplement you may get a different rate of Supplement. The additional household income disregard (see below) applies to income from work.

Many people on long-term Rent Supplement are being transferred to the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP). You can work full-time and continue to receive HAP.

If your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant gets full-time work, your household is no longer eligible for Rent Supplement. (Note that a non-dependent household member can work full-time but they must make a minimum contribution to the rent - see 'If your family circumstances or size changes' below.)

If you get full-time work and you are not entitled to keep your Rent Supplement you can continue to get Rent Supplement for up to 30 days after starting work or until you are paid, whichever is earlier.

People getting Rent Supplement who have a long-term housing need will transfer to the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP). You can work full-time and get HAP. You can contact the DSP to find out if you can transfer to HAP.

If you get part-time work:

If you get part-time work (defined as less than 30 hours a week) you can keep your Rent Supplement but your income from work will be assessed against your Rent Supplement and it may be reduced. The additional household income disregard (see below) applies to income from part-time work.

The same applies to your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant - any income he/she gets from part-time work will be assessed against your Rent Supplement and the Supplement may be reduced.

If you change from one social welfare payment to another:

There is no change to your Rent Supplement payment if the amount you get stays the same.

If you transfer onto a different and higher payment your Rent Supplement will be reduced in line with the increase (unless you are aged 65 or over or are getting a carer’s payment – see below). For example, a person getting Illness Benefit who transfers onto Maternity Benefit at a higher rate may have their Rent Supplement reduced by the difference between the two payments.

If you are aged 65 or over (or where one of a couple is aged 65 or over) and have a combined household income greater than the SWA rate for your circumstances you are allowed a disregard. The disregard is equal to the difference between the maximum rate of State Pension (Contributory) for your circumstances and the basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) rate for your circumstances.

A carer's disregard applies to people getting carer’s payments. So, if you are getting Carer's Allowance or Carer’s Benefit, the amount of the actual carer’s payment above the appropriate SWA rate for your situation (either the SWA qualified adult rate if one of a couple is getting Carer's Allowance or the personal rate of SWA if the carer is single) is not taken into account. Half-rate Carer’s Allowance is never taken into account.

To get your carer’s disregard you subtract the relevant rate of SWA from the actual rate of Carer’s Allowance or Benefit you are getting (not including any Increases for Qualified Children).

If your primary social welfare payment is stopped:

If your primary social welfare payment is suspended, pending investigation, your Rent Supplement can be stopped. If your social welfare payment is stopped, you should contact your Community Welfare Officer (CWO) as soon as possible for advice - see ‘How to apply’ below.

If you go onto an employment scheme:

The following table shows how income from various schemes is treated.

If you go back to education:

Generally, people in full-time education are not eligible for Rent Supplement. Your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant can be in full-time education while you are getting Rent Supplement.

If you are getting a Back to Education Allowance or taking part in a Springboard course, you can keep your Rent Supplement.

If you are on an approved training course (FET (previously FÁS) course) you can keep or apply for Rent Supplement. If you are participating in an approved training course, any lunch or travel allowances paid may be disregarded.

You can apply for or keep Rent Supplement while on a Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS) or Youthreach.

Some people can return to education and keep their Disability Allowance or One-Parent Family Payment but they will lose their Rent Supplement because they are in full-time education.

If you inherit or are given money:

The income limits for the Supplementary Welfare Allowance Scheme (under which Rent Supplement is paid) are lower than those for other social welfare payments. If, for example, you inherit €15,000 this may have no effect on your main payment (because you can have up to €20,000 capital for the majority of means-tested social welfare payments and €50,000 for Disability Allowance) but it may affect your Rent Supplement (because any capital over €5,000 is assessed).

If your family circumstances or size changes:

Every non-dependent adult household member is expected to pay a minimum contribution to the rent of €30. (A non-dependent household member is anyone who is not your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant who is working or getting a social welfare payment in their own right.)

Custom and practice is that the assessable income of the non-dependent household member (that is, gross income less PRSI and travel costs to work) is divided by the appropriate rate of SWA for their situation which is then multiplied by €30 to establish how much they should contribute to the household's rent.

If the non-dependent household members are a couple their contribution is €40.

When your child turns 18, if they are still in full-time education, there will be no change to your Rent Supplement. If a child living in the household turns 18 and gets a job or a social welfare payment in their own right they are expected to pay a minimum contribution of €30. However, if benefit and privilege has been assessed against their social welfare payment they do not have to contribute €30.

If a child leaves home your rent must be under the limit for your reduced family size. (The Rent Supplement limits vary depending on where you live. You will need to know what the limits are in your local area.)

If you have a new baby or if you adopt or foster a child your family size will increase so the rent limit that applies to your household may increase. If you have a large family and you need larger accommodation that costs more than the rent limits that apply in your area you should discuss your situation with your local Community Welfare Officer - see ‘How to apply’ below.

The DSP can make additional Rent Supplement payments above rent limits when necessary. This is done on a case-by-case basis, for both people getting Rent Supplement and for new applicants.

If you marry or start to live with a new partner:

If someone comes to live with you as a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant you will be treated as a couple and you will be expected to pay a minimum household contribution of €40 towards your rent. You do not have to make a new application for Rent Supplement. However your existing claim will be reviewed and any income that your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant has from work or from a social welfare payment will be taken into account. If the person is working full-time you will no longer be entitled to Rent Supplement.

If you separate from your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant:

If your spouse or partner leaves the family home and you remain there with your children, your Rent Supplement payment does not change (because the rent limits for a one-parent family and a couple with children are the same). However, if your partner has custody of your child(ren) for most of the time, the rent limits applied for the family size can change (because the child(ren) are no longer in the home full time).

If your former spouse or partner pays maintenance some of this can be assessed in the means test for Rent Supplement. Child maintenance payments are not taken into account. The first €95.23 per week of any other maintenance is assessed in full (because it is considered to be a contribution towards your housing expenses) and any amount above this is assessed under the additional household income disregard - see ‘Additional household income disregard’ above.

If you do not have children and your partner leaves you, will be assessed as a single person for Rent Supplement.

If you own your home as joint owners and the person who leaves the family home applies for Rent Supplement, they may be refused because they are considered to have an interest in the home. However, once a separation agreement is in place and the home ownership issues have been resolved, the person who left should be able to apply for Rent Supplement in their own right. They will need to have their housing need assessed by the local authority in the usual way.

If your children spend some time with one parent and some time with another:

If you have shared custody or guardianship of a child and that child stays with you overnight for part of the week, you should check with your local Community Welfare Officer (CWO) to find out what level of Rent Supplement can be provided. Each Rent Supplement claim is examined with regard to all of the circumstances of the case.

If you are not the primary carer and are looking for accommodation to provide for your children the DSP will take the following into consideration when processing your Rent Supplement claim:

• Your family composition and size
• Whether any court orders or agreements exist indicating whether joint custody arrangements or access arrangements are in place
• Where you live in relation to the primary carer
• Whether the child is living with you temporarily as part of an access agreement
• Any evidence of a history of continued parental support for the child such as transfer of property to the primary carer, evidence of financial support and other supports such as attending parent-teacher meetings and collecting child from school
• Any evidence indicating whether you availed of overnight access to the child(ren) before your application for Rent Supplement
• Any evidence from any social worker or medical reports
• Whether any letters of consent from the primary carer exist or are required
• The content of any Housing Needs Assessment from your local authority

If your landlord raises the rent:

Rent Supplement is not normally paid where the rent payable to the landlord is over the limits. However, under certain circumstances the CWO can pay Rent Supplement where the rent is above the relevant limit; this might apply where there are special housing needs or on a very short-term basis until the tenant is in a position to reassume responsibility for his/her rent.

If your landlord increases the rent above the rent limit you should contact your local CWO. Whenever possible, the DSP will support you to stay in your home.

If you have to leave your current accommodation:

If there is a good reason why you have to leave your current accommodation (for example, your landlord is not willing to renew your lease), you can make an application for Rent Supplement for a new address.

However, you will have to apply again and fill out new application forms for yourself and your new landlord. There may be a gap in payment while your new application is processed.

If you qualified for Rent Supplement based on housing need (that is, you are on a local authority housing list) and you are moving to a new local authority area, you will have to make a fresh application with the new local authority.

Special provisions apply if you are at risk of becoming homeless.

If you go to hospital or prison:

If you go to hospital for a short stay, or if you are in prison or remanded in custody for less than 13 weeks, you can continue to get your Rent Supplement. If the period is longer than 13 weeks, you may no longer qualify or your family’s payment may be amended. In this case, you should contact your local CWO - see ‘How to apply’ below.

If you get an offer of housing from a local authority:

If you refuse two offers of social housing from a local authority within a 12-month period, your Rent Supplement will be stopped and you will not be allowed to claim Rent Supplement for 12 months.

If your circumstances change (including an increase in your rent), contact the Department of Social Protection.

If you wish to apply for Rent Supplement for the first time you should read our general document on Rent Supplement. You can download the application form from the Department of Social Protection's website (pdf).

You should contact th CWO at your local Community Welfare Service or contact the Rent Unit for your area (see the central rent unit list).