citizensinformation.ie (March 2020) COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment is a new social welfare payment for employees and self-employed people who are unemployed or who have their hours of work reduced during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. This includes people who have been put on part-time or casual work. It will be paid for up to 6 weeks and has a simple one–page application form. The new payment aims to get a social welfare payment to unemployed people quickly. If you have been diagnosed with COVID-19, or have been told to self-isolate by your GP, you should apply for Illness Benefit.
COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment is a new social welfare payment for employees and self-employed people who are unemployed or who have their hours of work reduced during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. This includes people who have been put on part-time or casual work. It will be paid for up to 6 weeks and has a simple one–page application form. The new payment aims to get a social welfare payment to unemployed people quickly.
COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment is a new social welfare payment of €350 a week for employees and self-employed people who have lost employment due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.
You can apply for the payment if you are aged between 18 and 66 and have lost your employment due to the coronavirus restrictions. Students, non-EEA nationals and part-time workers can apply for the payment.
If you have voluntarily taken time off work to look after your child because of school (or childcare) closures and you are no longer paid by your employer, you can apply for the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment.
You should apply online at MyWelfare.ie. This is the quickest way to apply.
If you have been diagnosed with COVID-19 or have been told to self-isolate by your GP, you should apply for Illness Benefit.
You can find out more about COVID-19 and social welfare payments.
Rules
Employees, self-employed people, students and part-time workers can apply for the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment. Both EEA and non-EEA workers qualify.
To qualify for the new COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment, you must:
- Be aged between 18 and 66
- Live in the Republic of Ireland
- Have been in employment or self-employment immediately before Friday 13 March 2020. If you work shifts, short time or other atypical work patterns you must have been in employment on or after 6 March 2020.
- Have lost your job or be temporarily laid off from work or asked to stay at home from work due to the pandemic
- Have taken time off work to mind your child because of school or childcare closures and your employer is no longer paying you
- Stopped trading as self-employed due to the pandemic
It will be paid for up to 12 weeks. (Originally it was to be paid for up to 6 weeks.)
The COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment is paid at a flat rate. If you have a spouse or partner and children (known as adult or child dependants), you should claim a jobseeker's payment as you will get a higher rate.
People who cannot get the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment
You cannot claim the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment, if you:
- Are continuing to get income from your employment or
- Voluntarily left your employment (except to look after your children)
If you applied for the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment and your employer has re-employed you under the new COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme, you must close your claim for Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment. You can close your claim using MyWelfare.ie.
If you are returning to Ireland after losing employment abroad, you are not eligible for the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment. You can apply for a jobseeker’s payment or Supplementary Welfare Allowance.
Cross-border workers
A cross-border or frontier worker is any employed or self-employed person who works in one jurisdiction and lives in another. Living in another jurisdiction means that you return to your home country every day, as a rule, or at least once a week. If a frontier worker loses their job, they should claim unemployment benefits from the country they are living in.
If you are a cross-border worker who lives in Ireland, were working in Northern Ireland and you lost your job due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you can claim the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment.
Workers who live in Northern Ireland cannot apply for the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment.