Separation and Entitlements

[Justlookin4help]

Hi myself and my partner have seperated.
We have one child.
The reasons for the separation are private but we 100% be not be getting back together.
We seperated mutually on good grounds.
We live together in our home with our child.
We both sleep in separate rooms.
prior to seperating i was paying all the bills, mortage, electric, gas, broadband, house insurance, property tax, bin charges, mortgage protection insurance, i still do as ex partner is not working.
My ex partner is no longer working since we seperated her reasons are private.
She wants to get maintenance from me for our child which i have agreed in principle to give a certain amount.
My querys is can she not get money off the state now as a single mother to reduce the amount of maintenance i pay her.
I cant move out cause il have to pay rent and a mortgage.
I dono what im gonna do long term. We are not together physically or emotionally, technically or sexually yet she and my child are financially dependant on me.

 

[DannyBoyD]

1. You have a legal obligation to maintain your child.
2. Maintenance payable is based on both parties income & expenditure.
3. Are you married?
4. Has your former partner applied for One Parent Family Benefit? I'm not 100% certain they will get it, if you are still living in the family home, but let DSP make that decision.
5. The mortgage, bills etc are also housing you and your child.

 

[Justlookin4help]

1. You have a legal obligation to maintain your child.
2. Maintenance payable is based on both parties income & expenditure.
3. Are you married?
4. Has your former partner applied for One Parent Family Benefit? I'm not 100% certain they will get it, if you are still living in the family home, but let DSP make that decision.
5. The mortgage, bills etc are also housing you and your child.

1.Legal Obligations i totally abide by in terms of maintenance. Aslo legally we are not together so i she should be entitled to something from the state.
2. My ex partner is not working i belive she exhausted her JB allowance but she is not returning to work, cant go into details thats private to her. So its bases off my wages i assume.
3. Not married.
4. No she has not applied because she said she wont get anything cause im stil living in the same house. I don't know the legal rules around that, all i know is we are not together as a couple that finished.
5. Yes i agree the house is for our child when we are long and gone.

 

[ClubMan]

1.Legal Obligations i totally abide by in terms of maintenance.

Can you clarify what you mean by legal obligations here given that you are an unmarried couple? Do you have some legal agreement in place between yourselves?

2. My ex partner is not working i belive she exhausted her JB allowance

I presume you are referring to PRSI contribution related Jobseeker's Benefit here? Jobseeker's Allowance is a different payment that is not PRSI linked but is means tested.

Jobseeker's Benefit

This is a weekly payment to people who have lost their job and are covered by social insurance.

www.citizensinformation.ie

Jobseeker's Allowance

A means-tested payment to people who are unemployed and looking for work.

www.citizensinformation.ie

but she is not returning to work, cant go into details thats private to her. So its bases off my wages i assume.

If she was receiving Jobseeker's Benefit then that would have been based on her own PRSI contributions. Maybe she's entitled to Jobseeker's Allowance but I'm not sure how the means testing will be done given that you are living in the same premises even if you are no longer a couple.

4. No she has not applied because she said she wont get anything cause im stil living in the same house. I don't know the legal rules around that, all i know is we are not together as a couple that finished.

It might be worth talking to the Department of Social Protection to clarify how they deal with a situation like yours where you a no longer a couple (albeit you are obviously co-parents) but happen to live in the same premises. I can't imagine that they haven't had to deal with this sort of situation before. As such they probably have a process to deal with it and deal with the two of you as separate individuals.

 

[Introuble83]

Sorry to hear your situation. I found myself in a similar one last year . Currently going through divorce proceedings. I would strongly recommend for your own mental health consider finding alternative accommodation but in advance of this seeking legal advice. She ex partner will get loan parent but not likely whilst your living together.

 

[Justlookin4help]

Can you clarify what you mean by legal obligations here given that you are an unmarried couple? Do you have some legal agreement in place between yourselves?

I presume you are referring to PRSI contribution related Jobseeker's Benefit here? Jobseeker's Allowance is a different payment that is not PRSI linked but is means tested.

Jobseeker's Benefit

This is a weekly payment to people who have lost their job and are covered by social insurance.

www.citizensinformation.ie

Jobseeker's Allowance

A means-tested payment to people who are unemployed and looking for work.

www.citizensinformation.ie

If she was receiving Jobseeker's Benefit then that would have been based on her own PRSI contributions. Maybe she's entitled to Jobseeker's Allowance but I'm not sure how the means testing will be done given that you are living in the same premises even if you are no longer a couple.

It might be worth talking to the Department of Social Protection to clarify how they deal with a situation like yours where you a no longer a couple (albeit you are obviously co-parents) but happen to live in the same premises. I can't imagine that they haven't had to deal with this sort of situation before. As such they probably have a process to deal with it and deal with the two of you as separate individuals.

Sorry i mean i am legally abiding as in if i have to pay maintenance i will accordingly to the law..
Yes she was ok JB, never applied for JA, she never return to work. No income.
All that was ok when we were a cohabiting couple i was supporting her as my partner. Now we are two single parents living together but not a couple and not in a relationship. Not that its anyones business but i recently came out thats the reason for the seperation..
The social, well iv been employed all my life never had dealings with em but i hear they're a right shower of swear words.
I wanna stay in the home as i cant afford to mortgage and rent but i dont want my ex partner to lose out on any state assistance she is entitled to a single unemployed parent.
Do i have to physically be gone form the house for her to be eligible for state support. Even if i leave il still be paying all the bills.

 

[Justlookin4help]

Sorry to hear your situation. I found myself in a similar one last year . Currently going through divorce proceedings. I would strongly recommend for your own mental health consider finding alternative accommodation but in advance of this seeking legal advice. She ex partner will get loan parent but not likely whilst your living together.

Hi thanks. Sorry to hear.
No divorce for us as not married.
I Cant afford to live elsewhere.

 

[ClubMan]

The social, well iv been employed all my life never had dealings with em but i hear they're a right shower of swear words.

I don't know where you heard that but that's not my experience at all. They are there to help and to ensure that people receive anything that they're entitled to. Of course, they're also there to prevent fraudulent claims. In my experience they are generally helpful, approachable, and efficient.

Do i have to physically be gone form the house for her to be eligible for state support.

Unfortunately I don't know the answer to that. Others here may. But I doubt that they've never dealt with a non married couple who are no longer a couple but still live in the same premises before. I imagine that they have a process for dealing with such a situation and the individual adults in question separately. But you/she may need to contact them to explain the situation and clarify any SW entitlements.

 

[Monbretia]

You say she is never going back to work, now not asking the reason but that is a very definite statement and can only assume the reason is medical in which case maybe she needs to be applying for illness payments of some sort. If someone is unable to return to work then jobseekers allowance is not suitable either as you have to be available and looking for work.

Now if it's just a choice, unlikely, never to return to work then I don't know what social welfare options could be there. A phone call or visit to Citizens Information office would be a good start, they will give you the information you need before you approach Social Welfare who are not that bad but handy to have the info first from Cit Info who really are helpful.

 

[Justlookin4help]

You say she is never going back to work, now not asking the reason but that is a very definite statement and can only assume the reason is medical in which case maybe she needs to be applying for illness payments of some sort. If someone is unable to return to work then jobseekers allowance is not suitable either as you have to be available and looking for work.

Now if it's just a choice, unlikely, never to return to work then I don't know what social welfare options could be there. A phone call or visit to Citizens Information office would be a good start, they will give you the information you need before you approach Social Welfare who are not that bad but handy to have the info first from Cit Info who really are helpful.

Sorry i mean she is not going back to her previous employer. She left cause she felt bullied. She had mention about going back to work doing 30hrs per week if could get daughter into creche as mentally being out of work is hard on the mind.
Her friend metion she could get a family income support payment if she was working a certain amount hours and earning under a certain amount but that they might take my income into in when working out eligibility. So do I have to move out of the house for her to qualify.

 

[Monbretia]

So do I have to move out of the house for her to qualify.

Best bet is ask Citizens Information, they will have come across any query you could have before.

 

[Justlookin4help]

I don't know where you heard that but that's not my experience at all. They are there to help and to ensure that people receive anything that they're entitled to. Of course, they're also there to prevent fraudulent claims. In my experience they are generally helpful, approachable, and efficient.

Unfortunately I don't know the answer to that. Others here may. But I doubt that they've never dealt with a non married couple who are no longer a couple but still live in the same premises before. I imagine that they have a process for dealing with such a situation and the individual adults in question separately. But you/she may need to contact them to explain the situation and clarify any SW entitlements.

Thanks Clubman, I dont know if im allowed to paste weblinks but this will back up the social welfare shower of swear words. Shocking reports in this article.

Overreach of power: Intimidation and harassment in the social welfare system

The system of social welfare inspection leaves mothers in receipt of single-parent payments vulnerable to abuse of power, with unannounced visits and searches of personal possessions, writes Political Correspondent Aoife Moore

www.irishexaminer.com

 

[Conan]

Thanks Clubman, I dont know if im allowed to paste weblinks but this will back up the social welfare shower of swear words. Shocking reports in this article.

Overreach of power: Intimidation and harassment in the social welfare system

The system of social welfare inspection leaves mothers in receipt of single-parent payments vulnerable to abuse of power, with unannounced visits and searches of personal possessions, writes Political Correspondent Aoife Moore

www.irishexaminer.com

I think this article grossly exaggerates the situation. Social Welfare staff have a responsibility to ensure claimants are entitled to payment being sought. We have seen other reports of "single mothers" claiming benefits whilst in a relationship. SW staff are there to protect the taxpayers who fund these payments. So I have no problem with SW staff efficiently examining the continued entitlement of claimants.
In my experience I have always found SW staff to be very helpful and considered in their dealings with claimants. If one is entitled to a SW benefit then generally the SW staff will assist positively in setting up the payments. But if not entitled then their job is to protect taxpayers.

 

[ClubMan]

Thanks Clubman, I dont know if im allowed to paste weblinks but this will back up the social welfare shower of swear words. Shocking reports in this article.

Overreach of power: Intimidation and harassment in the social welfare system

The system of social welfare inspection leaves mothers in receipt of single-parent payments vulnerable to abuse of power, with unannounced visits and searches of personal possessions, writes Political Correspondent Aoife Moore

www.irishexaminer.com

Fair enough. If you're going to go by alarmist articles like that then don't bother contacting DSP/SW even if they might be able to better apprise the two of you about your entitlements.

 

[Cervelo]

So do I have to move out of the house for her to qualify.

Simple answer is yes, once you are living under the same roof as your ex-partner and child you will be considered as a cohabiting couple by the social welfare and assessed jointly for any entitlements

 

[Introuble83]

Hi thanks. Sorry to hear.
No divorce for us as not married.
I Cant afford to live elsewhere.

You need to start exploring options as I suspect your ex partner won’t receive benefits until you’re gone . You/ she may also want to move on to other relationships which will be difficult whilst living together.

 

[DannyBoyD]

Simple answer is yes, once you are living under the same roof as your ex-partner and child you will be considered as a cohabiting couple by the social welfare and assessed jointly for any entitlements

My view would be to apply for it (One Parent Family benefit) and let DSP make that decision.

 

[gipimann]

Bear in mind that, with some exceptions, a parent can only claim one parent family payment if there is a child under 7.
More info here

One-Parent Family Payment

One-Parent Family Payment is a payment for men and women who are bringing children up without the support of a partner.

www.citizensinformation.ie

 

[Cervelo]

My view would be to apply for it (One Parent Family benefit) and let DSP make that decision.

Why waste your time applying when their going to reject the application on the ground that the couple are still co-habiting
I would presume then later on when they actually stop co-habiting she will have to appeal the rejection which might or might not go her way

 

[DannyBoyD]

Why waste your time applying

A. We are not the decision makers here, we don't know what additional guidelines might have been brought in to deal with exactly this situation.

B. It's the cost of a stamp.

C. Its no skin off your nose.