A Christmas bonus of 100% will be paid during this week (beginning December 4, 2023) to people qualifying for the Farm Assist social welfare payment.
The 100% Christmas bonus will be paid to those in receipt of Farm Assist payments and also other state supports this week. You do not need to apply for the bonus, if you qualify you’ll automatically get it.
It was announced in Budget 2024 that people on the maximum rate of Farm Assist will get an increase of €12 per week from January 2024.
There will be proportional increases for qualified adults and people on reduced rates of payment.
To qualify for Farm Assist, you must be considered a farmer, if you farm land that you own or lease and that you use for the purpose of husbandry. Husbandry means working the land with the aim of taking produce from the land.
You must pass a means tests, which means the Department of Social Protection examines all your sources of income and to qualify for Farm Assist, your income must be below a certain amount.
You must also be farming in Ireland and be aged between 18 and 66.
Farm assist
The number of Farm Assist recipients fell by nearly 11% in 2022 compared to the previous year, provisional data from the Department of Social Protection has shown.
According to the department, 4,457 low-income farmers across the country received the payment last year.
This is down from 5,004 recipients in 2021 and 5,511 in 2020.
The table below provides a county-by-county breakdown of the total number of recipients of payments under the scheme in 2022
County Recipients Carlow 33 Cavan 146 Clare 143 Cork 313 Donegal 910 Dublin 56 Galway 380 Kerry 303 Kildare 11 Kilkenny 48 Laois 39 Leitrim 198 Limerick 113 Longford 93 Louth 39 Mayo 737 Meath 25 Monaghan 227 Offaly 45 Roscommon 69 Sligo 108 Tipperary 138 Waterford 36 Westmeath 123 Wexford 101 Wicklow 23 TOTAL 4,457
When you apply for Farm Assist, a social welfare inspector will call to see you and ask to see various documents.
For example, accounts prepared for tax purposes, creamery returns, cattle registration cards, details of headage payments and area aid. They will also want information on the sale of crops, cattle, milk and other produce.
The inspector will then assess the costs actually and necessarily incurred in connection with the running of the farm.
These costs may include rent, annuities, the cost of inputs like feed and fertiliser and the depreciation of farm machinery.
Labour costs are taken into account, with the exception of the labour of the farmer and their spouse, civil partner or cohabitant.