Domiciliary Care Allowance 2024, Eligibility Criteria, Payout Amount

Domiciliary Care Allowance is one major way of financial support in Ireland, aimed at facilitating the parents or guardians in taking care of children with serious disabilities. The monthly payment to these carers, as set in 2024, will be € 340, slightly raised compared to the previous years.

Domiciliary Care Allowance 2024

The domiciliary care allowance is a monthly payment from the Department of Social Protection to carers of children under 16 years of age who have a severe disability. The said allowance is given in order to defray the extra expenses incurred by a child needing substantial care compared to other children.

The increase to €340 per month is only a modest increase when one looks back to the past, with increases over the past few years. In addition to the DCA, carers may be eligible to receive a Carer’s Support Grant, which currently provides a payment of €1,850 p.a. for each person cared for.

Eligibility Criteria for the Domiciliary Care Allowance 2024

For a child to be awarded Domiciliary Care Allowance, they must meet the following strict conditions:

The child must be under 16.
The child must be severely disabled. Medically, this is defined as a child who needs constant or frequent care and attention considerably higher than what another child of the same age would normally need.
To decide whether a child’s disability is severe, one does not consider the nature of the incapacity but rather the need for care.
The condition is likely to continue for at least a year.
The child needs to be resident in Ireland.
The child should be living at home with the claimant for at least five days a week
The claimant should provide day-to-day care to the child. It is also required that the carer should be usually resident in Ireland.
Part of the assessment is a medical examination. The Department of Social Protection uses their medical criteria to identify how severe the child’s disability is. The medical referee will take into account:
- Medical history of the child
- Information relating to the level of care required by the child
- Reports from the doctors

How to Claim Domiciliary Care Allowance 2024?

Please note that there is a necessity to have all correct documentation before one makes an application for the Domiciliary Care Allowance as the Department of Social Protection does not appreciate incomplete information.

An application form can be downloaded from the Department of Social Protection. Or else, you may pick up the form at a local County Council Intreo Centre

The following should be included:

Details about the child’s caretaker, the care recipient, and the child’s disability should be stated extensively
The application form details that the child requires high-intensive care, medium-intensive, or low-intensive care.
This may include:
- Medical reports to confirm the disability and care needs of the child
- Evidence to show the age of a dependent child (e.g. birth certificate)
- Evidence of residency (e.g. utility bills, rent receipts)
- Evidence of income
When you have completed the application form and you have all the documents you need, send the application with your local Intreo Centre.
If your claim is successful at the provisional review stage, a medical assessor will be nominated to hold an assessment on the child’s disability.
A decision will be made on the application. If it is successful, the DCA would usually be sent to you on the third Tuesday of every month.
There is no information available on the processing time of the applications for DCA. So grant yourself plenty of time before the assessment process.

Domiciliary Care Allowance Rate for 2024

The Domiciliary Care Allowance is financial help from the Irish government to parents or guardians of children under the age of 16 years with a serious disability that requires substantial care. The allowance is therefore provided to help with the extra costs involved in caring for such a child.

DCA Rate

€340 per month: This is the standard rate of Domiciliary Care Allowance for each eligible child.

Other Considerations

Exempted from tax: The DCA is a tax-free payment.
Non-means-tested: It is not payable based on the amount of money you earn.
Means of payment: DCA is paid out on the third Tuesday of each month.
Increase: The DCA rate was increased from €330 to €340 a month in January 2024.
The rate will be €340 per month for more than one qualifying child under the scheme.
On top of the DCA, carers may also avail of the Carer’s Support Grant, paid annually in respect of each person cared for at the rate of €1,850.
This grant is not means-tested and is automatically awarded to those receiving DCA, Carer’s Allowance, or Carer’s Benefit

Domiciliary Care Allowance Payment Schedule 2024

The Domiciliary Care Allowance rate is paid on a monthly basis.

Payment Date

Third Tuesday of every month: This is the regular and default credit-pay date. For example, if the date is January and the third Tuesday happens to be on the 17th, DCA for that month will be made therefore on the 17th of that month.

Consistency

It is consistent throughout the year, which ensures that caregivers can budget their resources.
Extraordinary started paying the following month: In very isolated cases and for unavoidable reasons, delays may be experienced. In fact such delays are very rare.
Direct deposit: Payments are directly deposited into a caregiver’s bank account, which is a safe method of receiving payment with no need to go to the bank.
Payment start date: The first due DCA payment is the second month after DCA is approved.