A new Working Family Payment was rolled out in 2018 – this was announced in Budget 2018 .
The aim of this new welfare payment was to ensure that every parent working 15 hours or more per week ends up with at least €11.75 per hour. (When this WFP is addd on)
Summary of Working Family Payment (2019 Figures)
The estimated expenditure on the Working Family Payment in 2018 was €410.5 million and the allocation for 2019 is €416.44 million.
The Working Family Payment is available to employees in private and public sectors.
The Working Family Payment is not taxable and neither is it taken into account in assessment for a medical card or GP card.
An employee who is getting the Working Family Payment may also be entitled to receive the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection’s Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance that is paid annually.
The Back to Work Family Dividend and Working Family Payment can also be paid together and the Dividend will not be taken into account in the income test for Working Family Payment.
The following table shows the family income that applies, depending on the family size. For example, a person with one child, with an average weekly family income of up to €521 can qualify for the Working Family Payment. The payment they receive is 60% of the difference between their average weekly family income and the income limit that applies to their family.
If a family has a weeekly net income under the figures given below – then they will qualify for some Working Family Payment
Family Size Weekly Limits
A person with one child €521
A person with two children €622
A person with three children €723
A person with four children €834
A person with five children €960
A person with six children €1,076
WFP pays 60% of the difference between your total family income and the income limit which applies to your family.
*These are net income figures, meaning after income tax, Universal Social Charge, employee PRSI, and pension contributions have been deducted.
An example :
A family with three children ; weekly total family income is €350.
The maximum family income for a family of your size is €723 (see table above).
The difference between €350 and €723 is €373.
Your rate of WFP is 60% of €373. In this case, €223.80 Your WFP rate is rounded up to €224
The following payments do not count as family income:
- Child Benefit
- Guardian’s payments
- Supplementary Welfare Allowance
- Domiciliary Care Allowance
- Foster Child Allowance
- Rent Allowance for tenants affected by the de-control of rents
- Rent Supplement
- Income from a charitable organisation
- Income from providing accommodation to students studying Irish in Gaeltacht areas under a scheme administered by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht
- Any income your children may have
Working Family Payment is payable for 52 weeks as long as you (or your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant) continue to be engaged in fulltime paid employment or as an employee(s) for at least 38 hours every fortnight.
The rate payable remains the same during this 52 week award period.
There are only 2 instances where your rate can be changed within the 52 week award period.
1. Your payment may be increased if you have an additional child (through birth, adoption, fostering, guardianship)
2. If, when you last applied for WFP you were getting the One- Parent Family Payment (OFP) and if during the 52 week WFP award period this payment is stopped solely because your youngest child has reached the OFP age threshold, WFP can be increased by reducing the OFP amount assessed in the most recent WFP Income Test to NIL
Other changes in income whether they are increases or decreases do not affect the rate of WFP payable.