To qualify for Child Benefit, you must be living in Ireland and satisfy the Habitual Residence Condition (HRC). Child Benefit is paid for a child aged under 16. You can get child Benefit for a child aged 16 or 17, if they are in full-time education or full-time training.
Child Benefit is €140 a month for each child. It is paid on the first Tuesday of every month. If you start getting Child Benefit for the first time for a baby, it will be paid at the start of the month after the birth of the child.
Who has access to Child benefits?
EU/EEA citizens
If you are an EU/EEA citizen working in Ireland, you will satisfy the habitual residence condition (HRC). You will also meet the HRC, if you have been working in Ireland but become unemployed and get Jobseeker’s Benefit. If your child is living in a different EU/EEA country from you, you should also apply for any family benefit payments you are entitled to in the country where they live.
UK citizens
Following Brexit, the rules for getting Child Benefit continue as before. For example:
If you work in the UK and live in Ireland, you will continue to get your UK Child Benefit and top-up of Irish Child Benefit.
If you work in Ireland and live in the UK, you will continue to get your Irish Child Benefit.
If you work and live in Ireland with your children, and your partner (spouse, civil partner or cohabitant) works in the UK, you should apply for Child Benefit in Ireland.
Non-EU/EEA citizens
If you are not an EU or EEA citizen, you must meet the habitual residence condition to qualify for Child Benefit in Ireland. If you are a non-EU/EEA citizen and are legally working in Ireland, you may qualify for Child Benefit if your child is a resident in Ireland or in another EU state. More information is available in our document on habitual residence.
How to apply
If your baby is born in Ireland, you will need to register the birth of your baby within 3 months of the birth. After you do this, the Department of Social Protection (DSP) will begin a Child Benefit claim for your child.
If your child was not born in Ireland, or if you did not register their birth within 3 months, you must fill in Child Benefit form CB1 and send it to the Child Benefit Section:
Child Benefit Section
Department of Social Protection
Social Welfare Services Office
St Oliver Plunkett Road
Letterkenny
Co. Donegal
F92 T449
If you are already claiming Child Benefit for another child and you register the birth of your new baby within 3 months, your new baby will be added to your Child Benefit claim. Payment begins automatically from the month after the birth. The DSP will write to you confirming when payment will start.