rent allowance

if someone is on disability allowance and living at family home can they apply for rent allowance to be paid to the owner of the home(ie a parent)? and can this parent then use rent a room scheme to not pay tax on it?

I am not sure of the answer to this one - it's something I haven't come across before.

Under the general rules regarding rent supplement, it is clear that you may be eligible to apply for rent allowance given you are in receipt of Disability Allowance. It is also clear that a Community Welfare Officer would disregard 120 euro of your income for rent allowance purposes provided you were engaged in rehabilitative training or employment.

I am not sure however whether your family home would be considered 'private rented accommodation' for the purposes of claiming rent supplement.

I'd suggest you check with your local Community Welfare Officer for a definitive response to this.

A family home would not be considered private rented accommodation for the purposes of rent allowance.

If someone has accommodation, say a house or apartment to rent, it is possible to rent it to a family member, if the landlord can prove that they were previously in receipt of rental income from that property. In other words, the property had been let and is now being re-let to a relative, which proves that it wasn't bought for the purpose of providing accommodation to the relative. A room in a family home would not fit this criteria.