Monthly Archives: May 2021

I care for my mother full time and I get Carer’s Allowance. Last year, I automatically got the Carer’s Support Grant in June – will I get it again this year?

The Carer’s Support Grant is an annual payment made to full-time carers. It is paid by the Department of Social Protection (DSP) usually on the first Thursday of June each year. The grant is €1,850 (an increase of €150 from last year).

People getting Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit or Domiciliary Care Allowance are paid the grant automatically.  If you are getting one of these payments on the first Thursday in June, you automatically get the grant so you do not need to apply.

Full-time carers who are not getting one of these payments need to apply to the DSP. You must be:

• Ordinarily resident in the State and caring on a full-time basis for at least six months (including the first Thursday in June)
• Living with the person being cared for (or, if not, be contactable quickly by a direct system of communication, for example, telephone or alarm).

You won’t qualify if you are working, studying or training for more than 18.5 hours a week, getting a jobseeker’s payment or signing on for credits.

To apply, you need to fill out one application form (form CSG1) (pdf) for each person being cared for (a grant may be paid for each of them). You can get the form on gov.ie. For any given year, you can apply for the grant from April of that year until 31 December of the following year. So for 2021, you can apply up until December 2022.

You can read more about the Carer’s Support Grant on citizensinformation.ie

You can also get information and advice from:

• The Citizens Information Phone Service: Call 0761 07 4000, Monday to Friday, 9am – 8pm
• Our national call back service: Visit citizensinformation.ie/callback to request a phone call from an information officer

You can continue to contact your local centre by email or phone using the details in the Find a Centre page on citizensinformation.ie.

I live in Ireland but travel to work in Northern Ireland every day. Do I have to apply for a Frontier Worker Permit to continue working there?

You are a cross border worker (also called a frontier worker). This is a person who lives in one country and works in another, returning to the country they live in at least once a week. For example, a person who lives in Ireland and travels to work in Northern Ireland is a cross border worker.

After Brexit, the UK introduced rules that affect EU citizens who work in Northern Ireland (and the rest of the UK). However, these rules do not apply to Irish citizens.

Irish and British citizens have the right to live and work in both Ireland and the UK because both countries are part of the Common Travel Area. Common Travel Area rights only apply to Irish and UK citizens, and not to citizens of other countries who live in Ireland or the UK.

So, if you are an Irish citizen you do not need a Frontier Worker Permit.

However, if you are an EU citizen who was a cross border worker before 1 January 2021, you must apply for a Frontier Worker Permit to continue working there after 30 June 2021. You can apply for the permit online. There is no charge for a Frontier Worker Permit.

If you became a cross border worker after 31 December 2020, you are not eligible for the Frontier Worker Permit. You must apply for permission to work in the UK as part of the UK’s Points Based Immigration System.

EU citizens who live in Northern Ireland and work in Ireland do not need to apply for permission to work in Ireland. You must apply for UK residence through the EU Settlement Scheme (if you were living in the UK before the end of 2020) or the Points Based Immigration Scheme (if you have moved there since the beginning of 2021).

You can find out more about cross border workers on citizensinformation.ie.

During COVID-19, you can find comprehensive integrated information online at citizensinformation.ie/covid19/ and you can get daily updates on what’s changed on Twitter at @citizensinfo.

You can also get information and advice from:

• The Citizens Information Phone Service: Call 0761 07 4000, Monday to Friday, 9am – 8pm
• Our national call back service: Visit citizensinformation.ie/callback to request a phone call from an information officer

You can continue to contact your local centre by email or phone using the details in the Find a Centre page on citizensinformation.ie.

I regularly walk near my home and I’ve recently noticed a lot of rubbish on the paths. Is there anything I can do about it?

Littering in an open or public place is an offence. Your local authority is responsible for keeping public places under their control, clear of litter. If you notice illegal dumping, you should report it to your local authority, or call the 24-hour National Environmental Complaints Line on 1850 365 121. The local authority will investigate your complaint and take action if necessary. If the local authority can find out who owns the rubbish, the owner can be prosecuted, even if they haven’t been caught in the act of dumping.

Local authority litter wardens and Gardaí can impose penalties for littering. People who litter can get an on-the-spot fine of €150, or if convicted they can get a maximum fine of €4,000.

If you own or are responsible for somewhere that is open to the public, it is your responsibility to keep it litter-free. This includes public parks, bus and train stations and school campuses. If you are a dog owner and do not remove your dog’s waste from public places and dispose of it properly, you can be prosecuted in the District Court.

You should contact your local authority to get more information on anti-littering campaigns or projects in your area.

During COVID-19, you can find comprehensive integrated information online at citizensinformation.ie/covid19/ and you can get daily updates on what’s changed on Twitter at @citizensinfo.

You can also get information and advice from:

• The Citizens Information Phone Service: Call 0761 07 4000, Monday to Friday, 9am – 8pm
• Our national call back service: Visit citizensinformation.ie/callback to request a phone call from an information officer

You can continue to contact your local centre by email or phone using the details in the Find a Centre page on citizensinformation.ie.

My partner and I have two young children together. We live together but we are not married and haven’t got around to making our wills. If something happened to one of us, would we automatically be entitled to each other’s estate?

It is important for you and your partner to discuss the matter of inheritance sooner rather than later. Because you are not married, neither of you is automatically entitled to inherit anything from the other. If your partner dies without a will, you have no right to any share of their estate no matter how long you have been together. So, for example, if you live with your partner but they own the house, you could be left in very difficult circumstances if they were to die unexpectedly.

If you own items jointly, these automatically pass to you and are not part of your partner’s estate. However, you might need to pay Capital Acquisitions Tax if the inheritance is above a certain threshold or value.  

If your partner has not made a will or has not provided for you, you may be able to apply to the courts to provide for you from your partner’s estate. This is known as the redress scheme for cohabiting couples. If you get redress by a court under this scheme, you may be exempt from paying Capital Acquisition Tax.

However, making a will can ensure that proper arrangements are made for you and your dependants and that any property is distributed in the way you both wish, subject to certain rights of spouses and children. Tax planning advice can help reduce or minimise the amount of tax your partner or family must pay. A solicitor can help you draft a will or you can draft one yourself.

You can read more about inheritance rights of cohabiting couples on citizensinformation.ie

During COVID-19, you can find comprehensive integrated information online at citizensinformation.ie/covid19/ and you can get daily updates on what’s changed on Twitter at @citizensinfo.

You can also get information and advice from:

• The Citizens Information Phone Service: Call 0761 07 4000, Monday to Friday, 9am – 8pm
• Our national call back service: Visit citizensinformation.ie/callback to request a phone call from an information officer

You can continue to contact your local centre by email or phone using the details in the Find a Centre page on citizensinformation.ie.