Operational Guidelines: JobsPlus

Description

JobsPlusis an employer incentive which encourages and rewards employers who offer employment opportunities to individuals who are unemployed. Regular payments will be made to qualifying employers to offset wage costs where they recruit eligible jobseekers for full time employment.

Objective

This incentive is designed to encourage employers and businesses to focus their recruitment efforts on those who have been out of work for a period.

Form of incentive

The incentive is provided in the form of a monthly payment to employers by electronic fund transfer from the Department of Social Protection.

The grant rates eligibility criteria are set out in section 3.1 below.

European Social Fund (ESF+ programme 2021-2027)

The ESF+ is the EU’s instrument for investing in people. It is a co-financed programme, where EU funding must be matched by a set percentage of national funding. The European Social Fund provides €10 billion annually across the European Union where it aims to improve employment and education opportunities, to enhance social inclusion and to tackle poverty.

The European Commission is providing co-funding to JobsPlus for participants under 30 years. JobsPlus is jointly backed by the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Government of Ireland.

As part of the requirements to obtain this funding, participants under 30 should be made aware of this funding. All JobsPlus related documentation and websites should have the Government of Ireland, ESF+ and European Structural logo along with a statement that those under 30 are co-funded as above.

Overview

The JobsPlus incentive is in operation since early July 2013 and has been available for all eligible full- time recruitment on or after 1 July 1st, 2013. To be considered eligible, the business must be registered as a PAYE employer with the Revenue Commissioners. There are no limits to the number of eligible employees any one employer may hire under the incentive. An employer may receive JobsPlus once only in respect of the same employee. The maximum support under the scheme is 18 months per employee.

Eligibility/Nature of business entity

The incentive is open to employers in the private, community, not-for-profit and voluntary sectors.

In order to qualify an employer must:

• Offer full-time employment of at least 30 hours per week, over a minimum of four days to eligible recruits (that is, an employee must be on the payroll and subject to PAYE and Class A PRSI). The employer must be a legal entity and/or a charity recognised by the Revenue Commissioners (with a CHY number), and
• Registered with the Revenue Commissioners as a PAYE employer.
• Other legally recognised forms of business are eligible, including partnerships, sole traders, trusts, and unincorporated bodies provided these are recognised by the Revenue Commissioners and are registered as a PAYE employer.

Position must be new or arising from natural turnover

The incentive is available to employers filling new positions or vacancies that arise because of natural turnover, for example retirements. Employers will be asked to give details of their workforce prior to application, in cases where an increase in work force is not evident, an employer will be asked to provide additional information to the department to support the application.

Persons in education/training or apprenticeship schemes are not eligible for JobsPlus (refer to section 3.3).

Start-up business and supported businesses

An employer in receipt of the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance (BTWEA) may qualify for the scheme. Start-up employers may also be eligible where evidence is provided that the business has commenced operations.

Businesses receiving other State supports

An employer availing of JobsPlus may not be entitled in receiving aid from other State sources for the employment costs of the same employee.

An employer must declare any other State funding received (or proposing to apply for support) towards the employment costs of an employee or supporting JobsPlus employment when applying.

After receiving JobsPlus support they must also declare this to a State body. Examples of State bodies listed below:

• IDA
• Enterprise Ireland
• Údarás na Gaeltachta
• County Enterprise Boards, for example.
• Publicly funded positions
• Community Services Programme
• Community Employment

JobsPlus is not payable for any employment positions also included under other State funded wage supports. This is to prevent double funding.

Employers not eligible for JobsPlus

An employer considered a public service body within the meaning of a ‘public service body’ is not eligible for the incentive, unless proof is provided that the position is not being funded by the Government. A person or body funded by the Oireachtas (including employers providing services on behalf of the Department of Social Protection), the Central Fund, or where a public service pension scheme exists or may be made, is defined as a public service body. This also includes schools, boards of management and education providers wholly or partly funded by the Department of Education and Science or the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science.

Tax clearance

An employer must be tax compliant. Employers must give permission to check their status with the Revenue Commissioners. Employers must supply a tax clearance access number (TCAN) at the time of application. Before a payment is made an employer’s TCAN is automatically checked and where it cannot be validated payment will not issue. Employers can obtain their TCAN by downloading direct from www.ros.ie or through their accountant.

Conditions of Employment

Compliance with minimum wage and other employment requirements

• While the amount of pay is for agreement between the employer and employee, under the National Minimum Wage Act 2000, employees are entitled to a minimum wage and all employers recruiting under this incentive should ensure they comply with the conditions as set out in the Act.
• Before applying, an employer must be satisfied that a job vacancy is available and complies with the rules and conditions of the JobsPlus incentive.
• The employer must be fully compliant with current workplace health and safety and all other legal requirements relating to the operation of the employment.

Working hours

• The job offered must be a full-time position of at least 30 hours per week.
• The employee must work a minimum of four days in any one week (4 in 7).
• Part-time employment and jobs which are short-term and/or seasonal are not eligible under the JobsPlus incentive.

Displacement

• This incentive cannot be used to support existing full-time employees
• Where an employer wishes to increase the hours of a part-time position and create a full-time position, an employer will be eligible for the incentive. This is subject to all other conditions of the JobsPlus scheme being met.
• An existing part-time employee may be supported as outlined above if they satisfy the eligibility requirements for JobsPlus.
• Employment that is considered to displace existing employment will be ineligible.
• The department reserves the right to raise an overpayment if an employer engages in any action that displaces existing employees, or intentionally creates a situation where employees are made redundant in order to gain financial support under the JobsPlus scheme.

Cessation of employment

• An employer is only entitled to the incentive based on the eligibility of the named employee. Continued entitlement stops immediately on termination of that employment.
• Where employment ends, the employer must notify jobsplusinfo@welfare.ie immediately or in writing (refer to section 6.4 for contact details) to cancel payment where failure to do so may result in overpayments being raised.

Prescribed Relatives

The recruitment of prescribed relatives (parent, grandparent, step-parent, child, grandchild, step-children, siblings or half-siblings) can only be considered eligible for support under the JobsPlus incentive where the employment is insurable under the Social Welfare Acts (Chapter 2 of Part 2 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 refers) and the application is approved by the department.

Jobseekers who are eligible

From January 2023 the following changes apply:

• Scheme eligibility is being extended to Disability Allowance and Blind Pension recipients in a similar manner to that in place for recipients of a Jobseeker’s payment.
• The higher level of JobsPlus grant, €10,000 over 2 years, will be paid to an employer who recruits a jobseeker who is a Traveller, or of Roma ethnicity. The qualifying period of 4 months (104 days) in the previous 6 months will apply.
• The higher level of grant will be paid to an employer who recruits a jobseeker who has a recent criminal record or a history of addiction (within previous 5 years). The qualifying period of 4 months (104 days) in the previous 6 months will apply.

From October 2024, the qualifying period for a person aged under 50 years to access the higher level of JobsPlus grant is being reduced to 24 months unemployment in the previous 30 months.

The following rates of payment and qualifying periods apply.

Grant

Grant €7,500 payable over 18 months:

Grant €10,000 payable over 18 months:

Time spent on other schemes/payments counts towards eligibility for JobsPlus

Time spent on a range of other education, training, work placement and activation support schemes can be considered when determining the required number of days in receipt of a qualifying payment. (Short term illness while participating on a work initiative will not affect entitlement to JobsPlus).

Summary table of qualifying payments and time spent on other schemes

Note: administered by ETBs (establishes an entitlement to a qualifying social welfare payment prior to/after participation on the Youthreach course - RSU circular 39/16 refers) 3 months period waived.

Note: (formerly Youth Employment Support Scheme (YESS). YESS programme now closed, however, time spent on this programme still counts towards the JobsPlus qualifying time)

Supplementary Welfare Allowance.

Where the applicant is in receipt of a qualifying payment, the time spent on Basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance prior to the qualifying payment, will count towards meeting the JobsPlus qualification period.

Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection weekly payment.

Where the applicant is in receipt of a qualifying payment, the time spent on BOTP weekly payment, prior to the qualifying payment, will count towards meeting the JobsPlus qualification period.

Time spent in prison may count towards the qualifying time once entitlement to a qualifying social welfare payment is established.

Individuals who are not eligible for JobsPlus

Recipients of the following are not eligible for JobsPlus:

• One-Parent Family Payment (excluding Jobseeker's Transitional Payment),
• [internal-link 10103 | Illness Benefit
• Jobseeker's Benefit payment under the Short Time Work Support (formerly systematic short-term working)
• Wage Subsidy Scheme (WSS)

Training/Education or apprenticeship schemes are not considered newly created full-time jobs. Therefore, the incentive is not offered to individuals engaged in apprenticeships, training schemes or work experience programmes.

Retention of secondary benefits and/or new scheme entitlement(s)

Working Family Payment

New employees under the JobsPlus initiative may be entitled to receive Working Family Payment. This is a weekly tax-free payment available to employees with children which gives extra financial support to people on low pay.

Back to Work Family Dividend (BTWFD)

Jobseekers that enter employment may be entitled to BTWFD which provides financial support for jobseekers with a dependent child on their return to work for a period of two years after commencing employment.

New employees will be able to access BTWFD without affecting supports available under JobsPlus. Further information on the BTWFD is available in your local Intreo Centre and Social Welfare Branch Offices. They will give guidance on the application process and provide the application form.

Medical Cards

People who have a medical card and have been unemployed for a minimum of 12 months may retain their medical card for a period of 3 years if they commence employment.

Retention of secondary benefits for Disability Allowance and Blind Pension recipients

Where a person is in receipt of a Disability Allowance or Blind Pension payment at a reduced rate due to means from employment, they retain the secondary benefits associated with that payment.

In cases where the person’s means, including income from employment, results in them no longer being eligible for the Disability Allowance or Blind Pension then the following applies:

• For Disability Allowance they retain their Free Travel Scheme Pass for five years.
• For Blind Pension they can retain the Free Travel Scheme Pass for life (subject to continuing to meet the other eligibility criteria for the Free Travel Scheme).

Fast Track: Where a person has left the Disability Allowance or Blind Pension payment due to taking up employment and that employment doesn’t work out in the first 12 months, (for any reason), then the person will be Fast-Tracked back onto the payment.

Status of employment

The status of the employment will be the same as any other employment and liable to PAYE, USC and PRSI.

Application Process for Employers

1. Register online on JobsPlus.ie

Once an employer decides to recruit an employee, they must:

• Complete an online application form:

This form requests information such as name of company, size of workforce, bank details and economic sector of company.

They must provide permission to check their tax clearance certificate online.

• The department will review, verify the information provided, and check the tax clearance certificate. Where eligible the employer will receive a confirmation e-mail.
• The employer will receive the JobsPlus eligibility decision by email.

Note, an employer is required to register once only. Subsequent applications will only be required where a company restructures and have a new company name and employer registration number.

2. Recruitment stage

At recruitment stage an employer could contact their local Intreo Centre or Social Welfare Branch Office to discuss their vacancy so that a suitable jobseeker could be put forward to fill the position.

An employer may also wish to consider advertising their vacancy on www.jobsireland.ie. This is a free service.

3. Verifying jobseeker’s eligibility for JobsPlus

When an employer has shortlisted candidates, they may advise the jobseeker to apply for JobsPlus on to www.jobsplus.iewhere appropriate, or obtain the person’s JP1 form where they have already been approved for the scheme.

The two-part JP1 approval form contains:

• Part A of the form will confirm eligibility and rate of payment for a prospective employer.
• Part B should be completed by the employer should they choose to employ the candidate. The candidate should bring the two-part JP1 form confirming eligibility to the employer for consideration.

4. The decision to hire

When the employer identifies the suitable jobseeker for the position, they complete Part B of the JP1 form for that person, sign the declaration and return it.

The returned JP1 form will be assessed to check that all conditions of the employment are met. The employer will be notified by e-mail that they have been awarded the incentive.

5. Awarding of employment

Note: It is only at the point of awarding employment that the applicant may need to close their qualifying payment.

Applicant– when the applicant is offered a position by the employer:

• Jobseekers recipients should close their jobseeker claim either online at MyWelfare.ie or attend their nearest Intreo Centre/Social Welfare Branch Office.
• Disability Allowance or Blind Pension recipients should immediately contact the relevant section to notify their change of circumstances so that their eligibility can be reviewed:

Employer

Payment of JobsPlus to the employer can only commence when confirmation that the new employee has closed their qualifying Jobseeker claim or engaged with relevant section (DA/BP) about their commencement of employment has been received.

Application Process for Jobseeker

A jobseeker may verify their eligibility as an employee for the JobsPlus incentive by applying online at JobsPlus.

In cases where a jobseeker self-identifies that they may be eligible for the higher rate of grant due to being a Traveller or person of Roma ethnicity, or due to having a recent criminal record or recent history of addiction, then further information may be sought to validate this. This is a confidential process, and no details will be shared with third parties.

After assessment of the candidate’s eligibility, the candidate will be sent a letter of approval/non-approval by post.

If eligible, a two-part JP1 form will be sent to the jobseeker by post:

• Part A of the JP1 form will confirm eligibility and rate of payment to a prospective employer should a jobseeker be employed and should be signed by the jobseeker.
• Part B to be completed by employer should they choose to employ the jobseeker. Where the jobseeker has been interviewed by an employer and asked to determine their eligibility for JobsPlus incentive, they should bring the two part JP1 form confirming eligibility to the employer for consideration.

It is a matter for the employer to offer the position to the person they consider to be most suitable for their vacancy.

The jobseeker’s recipient must take up employment immediately after signing off the live register or on completing one of the work activation initiatives outlined in section 3.2 in order to satisfy the conditions of JobsPlus incentive. A Disability Allowance/ Blind Pension recipient must notify the relevant section of their commencement of employment.

The completed JP1 form must be returned to the JobsPlus unit in Carrick on Shannon in order to create the employment and set up the monthly payments.

JobsPlus Unit

Shannon Lodge

Carrick on Shannon

Co Leitrim

N41 KD81

Retrospective decisions and late claims

The incentive will be awarded from a date determined by the department. No backdating of the incentive will apply.

Late claims: The JP1 form should be sent to the JobsPlus unit when the decision is made to employ the claimant and no later than 30 days after the commencement of employment. Where an application is made late, then evidence of the reasons for the delay should be submitted to the Department for consideration.

Decision review procedure

If the application is refused, or the grant payment is discontinued, the employer may request a review of the decision.

Decisions can be reviewed by officers not involved in the original decision. An applicant (employer or jobseeker) who is not satisfied with a decision made under the JobsPlus incentive may submit a written request for a review of the decision made. They should clearly outline the reason why a decision may be incorrect or that proper procedures were not applied.

The JobsPlus incentive is a non-statutory scheme and decisions cannot be appealed to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

Duration of JobsPlus approval as an employee

A jobseeker’s eligibility as an employee for JobsPlus is valid at the time it is verified and is re-confirmed on recruitment. Eligibility may be reviewed if there is a change in the jobseeker’s circumstances. Where circumstances change, a jobseeker can contact the JobsPlus unit on (071) 9672616 and request an up to date verification at www.jobsplus.ie.

Duration and method of Payment

The incentive will issue monthly in arrears by Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) – no other method of payment is available. Payment to the employer will commence from the next JobsPlus monthly payment date after receipt of the fully completed JP1 form and subject to fulfilling the conditions of the scheme.

Payment is over an 18 month period (18 monthly payments) from an approval date determined by the Department of Social Protection so long as eligibility continues. (From October 2024, the payment duration of the incentive has changed from 24 to 18 months for newly awarded claims)

The qualifying employer must specify the receiving bank account at the time of application. A monthly remittance slip will issue to employers outlining the employees to which the incentive refers.

Data Protection/Freedom of Information/Rights of Access

Data Protection

The Department of Social Protection will treat all information and personal data obtained as confidential. As part of our monitoring and reporting obligations, we will use data provided for the operation of JobsPlus carefully. We will only disclose information on employers and employees to other people or bodies in accordance with the law.

Freedom of Information Act, 2014 (FOI)

The Department of Social Protection undertakes to use its best endeavours to hold confidential any information provided by companies (correspondence/forms/tenders, and so on), subject to the department’s obligations under law, including the Freedom of Information Act, 2014. Should a company wish that any of the information it supplied not be disclosed because of its sensitivity, the company should identify this when providing the information, and specify the reasons for its sensitivity. The department will consult with the company’s representative about this sensitive information before deciding on any FOI request received. Please note, however, that if no information is identified as sensitive, with supporting reasons, then it can potentially be released in response to an FOI request.

Rights of Access

The payment of the incentive is wholly dependent on the continuing employment of the eligible employee and each approved incentive is uniquely associated to the specific employee.

An employer shall grant officials of the department access to records, financial or otherwise, pertaining to the JobsPlus Scheme. If requested, the employer will provide rights of access and inspection to its officers and agents and the Comptroller and Auditor General to all activities, records, persons and information which may reasonably be required to verify compliance by the Company with the terms and conditions agreed in relation to the Scheme.

All records, both manual and electronic, relating to either applications or funding provided under the JobsPlus Scheme must be retained for as long as the JobsPlus scheme is in payment and for six years after, and must be available for inspection.

Payment of JobsPlus may be suspended or stopped if the employer does not agree to any reasonable request from an officer or agent of the department to access any records they hold pertaining to the JobsPlus scheme.

Treatment of grant income for tax purposes

Income received by the employer from this initiative will not be considered as revenue/income for employer income or corporation tax purposes.

Recoupment of grant paid in excess

The Department of Social Protection can recoup all JobsPlus support paid in error or in excess and is not restricted by the circumstances giving rise to such excess in seeking recoupment.

Contacts and further information

JobsPlus incentive is managed and administered by the JobsPlus Unit.

Further information and advice on all aspects of the JobsPlus incentive is available:

• by accessing JobsPlus
• sending an email to jobsplusinfo@welfare.ie or
• by calling +353 (071) 9672616 or
• LoCall: 0818 927999 or by visiting any of the Intreo offices.

New JobsPlus Ready Reckoners are available for internal use only. Refer to JobsPlus and Working Age Schemes Policy team sites.

DSP Privacy Statement and Data Protection

The Department of Social Protection administers Ireland's social protection system. The Department requires customers to provide certain personal data in order to determine eligibility for relevant payments and/or benefits. A customer’s personal data may be exchanged with other Government Departments in certain circumstances where this is provided for by law. Full details of the Department's data protection policy setting out how we will use a customer’s personal data as well as information regarding their rights as a data subject are available https://www.gov.ie/dsp. Details of this policy are also available in hard copy upon request.

Note: The European Commission is providing co-funding to this scheme for participants under 30 years. The scheme is being backed jointly by the European Social Fund (ESF+) and the Government of Ireland.