Means Assessment (SWA)

Means Assessment
Legislation/Guidelines
What counts as means
Income from Employment or Self-Employment
Property and Capital
Income excluded

Means Assessment

The following is a brief summary of how means are assessed for the listed SWA payments. The effective Guidelines used in the calculation of means are those issued to the department’s representatives.

Basic SWA payments
Supplements, for example Rent or Mortgage, Diet, special heating needs

Legislation/Guidelines

chapter 9 of Part 3 and Chapter 3 of Part 10 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 2005 (as amended)
Part IV of the Third Schedule of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act 2005 - Rules as to calculation of means
Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 2007 (as amended)

What counts as means

Note - The assessment of means outlined below does not apply to Additional Needs Payment (excluding supplements). For these payments, if the customer has financial resources from any income source to meet the need, it would be expected that the customer provides for the need from that source.

income from employment or self-employment
income from DSP or HSE payments
the capital value of property, other than the claimant's own home
the value of any investments or savings (capital)
all income and the value of all property of which the claimant deprived himself or herself in order to qualify for SWA
income in cash, for example spousal maintenance payments
benefit and Privilege for person's aged under 25

Income from Employment or Self-Employment

Subject to certain conditions, a claimant may work up to 30 hours per week in insurable employment and still qualify for SWA.

Gross income less PRSI and reasonable travel expenses are taken into account for the means test.

Other necessary expenses may be allowed in the case of self-employment.

Property and Capital

Section 35 of Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007 provides for an amendment in the manner that capital is assessed for the Supplementary Welfare Allowance Scheme.

Property or Savings will be assessed on a weekly basis as follows:

disregard first € 5,000 of capital value of property or 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

Income excluded

In general the following items are not counted in the means test for Basic SWA and supplements:

Child Benefit, including equivalent payments from other EU countries
Domiciliary Care Allowance
Guardian's Payment (Contributory or Non-Contributory)
Carer's Support Grant
Fuel Allowance
Tusla Foster Care Allowance
payments received from Tusla - the Child and Family Agency for accommodating children under the Child Care Act
income from providing accommodation to students studying Irish in Gaeltacht areas
income from recognised non-profit making charitable organisations
the maintenance grant provided under the Student Grant Scheme
the first €165 of weekly earnings for claimants of Disability Allowance and Blind Persons Pension who benefit from an income disregard on their primary payment (applies to certain SWA supplements)
Health Service Executive (HSE) Mobility Allowance
Health Service Executive (HSE) training allowance while in Rehabilitative Training
Health Service Executive (HSE) Blind Welfare Allowance
Health Service Executive (HSE) payments for persons boarded out
payments made by Sport Ireland under the International Carding Scheme
payments under the 1916 Bursary Fund from the Department of Education
payments made under Túsla Educational Support for Children in Care and Aftercare Bursary scheme
Consumer Directed Home Support (CDHS)
scholarship payment to a maximum of €7,000 per annum paid by UCD’s Cothrom na Féine Scholarship Programme
any allowance under the Home Tuition Scheme administered by the Department of Education
Uversity payments made under the Higher Education Scholarships for Adult Learners of up to €7,000 per year
payments under the Department of Education's school transport scheme for children with special educational needs
payments made from the KickStart Scholarship Fund administered by the Probation Service
income derived from the Troubles Permanent Disablement Payment Scheme in accordance with the Victims’ Payments Regulations 2020
disregard of the Accommodation Recognition Payment of €800 per month received for hosting temporary protection beneficiaries who are not in receipt of a housing support payment from the department
a rental income disregard of up to a maximum of €269.23 per week to an owner-occupier’s means assessment, where the room(s) is rented as living accommodation for at least 28 consecutive days to person(s) other than immediate family members or employees This disregard applies to the residence of a person who moves out of their home under the Nursing Homes Support Scheme, (alternatively known as Fair Deal), and the residence of a Local Authority tenant who rents out a room to a student under the "Room for a Student — Local Authority Scheme"
maintenance payments paid in respect of children
an amount up to a maximum of €7,000 per annum from payments made by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science’s Student Accommodation Assistance Fund
an amount up to a maximum of €7,000 per annum from payments made by Co-operative Housing Ireland’s Scholarship Programme.

The following payments are also not taken into account for Rent Supplement and Other Supplement (formerly Mortgage Interest Supplement)

Living Alone Allowance
Back to Work Family Dividend
Half Rate Carer’s Allowance

The following compensation awards, together with any subsequent income from the investment of that money are excluded for all SWA payments:

by various compensation tribunals and the courts for people who have contracted Hepatitis C and/or HIV
by the Residential Institutions Redress Board
to persons who have disabilities caused by Thalidomide
awards paid to women following the publication of the Magdalen Commission Report
payments made under the Nursing Home Repayments scheme from the HSE for repayment of overcharged fees
payments awarded by the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Board
payments awarded under the Symphysiotomy ex Gratia Scheme
payments awarded under the Lourdes Hospital Redress Scheme 2007
payments awarded under the Lourdes Hospital Payment Scheme
payments awarded under the Stardust Victim's Compensation Scheme
ex gratia payments proposed by the Scoping Inquiry into the CervicalCheck Screening Programme
payments under the package of support measures set up in 2018 for women diagnosed with cervical cancer since 2008
payments made by the Northern Ireland Victim and Survivor Service (VSS) in accordance with the Victims and Survivors (Northern Ireland) Order 2006
payments for persons who suffered harm whilst in the care of Kerry Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
payments made under the Stardust Redress Scheme 2024
any payment made under the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme, established under section 5 of the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Act 2023 (No. 20 of 2023).
any payment made under the scheme operated by the State Claims Agency, known as the ‘Ex gratia scheme – Implementation of the ECtHR (European Court of Human Rights) Judgement in O’Keeffe v Ireland’

Means Assessment (SWA)