Publication
Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme: Your questions answered
From Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
Published on
Last updated on
The Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme is open for applications.
If you believe you are eligible for the Scheme, go to the How to apply to the Payment Scheme page for further information.
The quickest and easiest way to apply to the Payment Scheme is to do so using the Payment Scheme Online Portal.
If you would prefer to use a paper version of the form, you can find further information on the How to apply to the Payment Scheme page.
The quickest and easiest way to apply to the Payment Scheme is to do so using the Payment Scheme online portal.
If you’d prefer to apply by post, you can find further information on the How to apply to the payment scheme.
No, you will not need to supply records documenting time spent in a Mother and Baby or County Home Institution.
You simply need to confirm that you (or the person you are applying for) spent time in a scheduled institution and include the name of the institution(s).
You will also be asked to provide an indication, or your best estimate, of the dates of arrival to and departure from the institution(s). We understand that not everyone will know the exact arrival and departure dates from the institution(s) concerned, so if this is the case, don’t worry.
If you don’t know the name of the institution you were in, and you spent time in the institution as a mother, you may be able to get information on the institution by making a Data Subject Access Request.
If you spent time in the institution as a child, and you were adopted or boarded out, you may be able to get information through the Birth, Information and Tracing Service. Further information is available at www.birthinfo.ie.
Proof of identity showing photo ID is required for all Applicants to the Scheme. Where there is a formal support arrangement in place, photo ID will also be required for this person (for example, Co-Decision Maker/Decision-Making Assistant). Where an application is being made on behalf of a person who is deceased, proof of identity is only required for the personal representative. The following forms of ID will be accepted and must be copied and then certified, further information on certification of documents can be found in the Certification of documents section, Page 27 of the Information Booklet.
(a) certified copy of Passport, or
(b) certified copy of Driving Licence, or
(c) certified copy of Public Services Card or equivalent social security card if living in another jurisdiction.
Please note the Free Travel Pass card from the Department of Social Protection, is a Public Services Card with a free travel component and so is accepted by the Payment Scheme as a photo ID.
When you make an application, you will need to provide a certified copy of photo ID, and other relevant documents, in some cases.
A certified copy of an original document is a photocopy that has been signed by an authorised person.
A full list of who can certify your identification is listed on the Certification of documents page.
There are three benefits available under the Payment Scheme:
- a general payment;
- a work-related payment; and
- health supports.
The level of the financial payment will depend on the amount of time spent in one of the institutions. Further information on the payment rates for general and work-related payments is available.
The health supports will be either:
• an enhanced medical card; or
• for people living outside of Ireland only, a health support payment valued at €3,000, instead of the enhanced medical card.
The enhanced medical card entitles the holder to the following services, without charge, under the public health system in Ireland:
• GP services;
• prescribed drugs, medicines, aids and appliances;
• dental, ophthalmic (services to help with eye diseases) and aural (hearing)
• services;
• home nursing;
• home support;
• counselling;
• chiropody/podiatry (feet issues); and
• physiotherapy.
In addition, if you have a medical card you do not have to pay the €100 Emergency Department statutory charge.
If you are already in possession of a means-tested medical card in Ireland, it may still be worthwhile to apply for the enhanced medical card under this Payment Scheme. This is because the enhanced medical card is not means-tested.
People who spent time as mothers or as children in one of the listed Mother and Baby or County Home Institutions may be eligible for benefits under the Payment Scheme.
As above, there are three benefits available under the Payment Scheme: a general payment; a work-related payment; and health supports.
Full information on the eligibility criteria for each is available on the Eligibility criteria page.
This Scheme covers the Mother and Baby Institutions investigated by the Commission of Investigation and all County Home Institutions. The full list, as per the legislation, is outlined on the Institutions covered by the Payment Scheme page.
Yes, it is possible for the personal representative of a deceased relevant person to make applications for a financial payment where the person died on or after the date of An Taoiseach’s apology to survivors on 13 January 2021.
The Payment Scheme Office will only deal with one personal representative for an application. If you are applying on behalf of someone who has died, you will need to provide supporting documentation to verify that you are the personal representative for the deceased person’s estate. If there is more than one personal representative, you will be asked to attach a letter to the application, signed by all personal representatives, nominating you as the personal representative for the application and agreeing that the Payment Scheme Office will deal with you alone in respect of the application. If this letter cannot be provided, an application can proceed, but the Payment Scheme Office will deal with the first personal representative who has come forward with an application in relation to the estate of a deceased person.
In terms of documentation, you will need to provide a copy of the person’s Death Certificate, as well as an additional proof of your right to represent the estate, like a certified copy of the Grant of Probate, or a certified copy of the Letter of Administration.
For further information on the application process, take a look at the How to apply to the Payment Scheme. Further information is also available in the Payment Scheme Information Booklet. You can find this booklet at the links below:
Yes, generally speaking, applicants will be prioritised by age and applications will be processed in age order.
Applications from older people will be dealt with first. The first cohort to be processed are applications from those aged 80 and older.
If you are living abroad and think that you may be eligible for this Scheme, you can apply in the same way as someone living in Ireland – that is via the online portal or by post, if you’d prefer to use a paper form. Further information is available.
Regardless of where you are living, the financial payments from this Scheme are awarded in the same way.
In terms of health supports, the services available through the enhanced medical card cannot be availed of outside of Ireland. So, if you live abroad, you can apply for a health support payment valued at €3,000, instead of the enhanced medical card. It’s important to note that, if you live outside Ireland and still wish to be issued with an enhanced medical card, to have should you return to Ireland either temporarily or permanently, you will need a Personal Public Service Number (PPSN). In addition, to avail of the services offered through the enhanced medical card, you must be registered with a General Practitioner in Ireland.
There is no need to obtain legal support or advice to submit your application to the Scheme.
The application process will be straightforward and the responsibility to check for records lies with the Chief Deciding Officer, not the applicant.
If you decide to accept a payment under the Scheme you will have to sign a legal waiver. A copy of this legal waiver is available. The waiver says that you will not bring any legal proceedings and will discontinue any proceedings already commenced (if any) against a public body, that relate to the circumstances your application to the Payment Scheme concerns. Signing a waiver will not prevent you from discussing the payment you have received from the Scheme, if that is your wish.
To help you to decide if you want to take the payment and sign the waiver, you will be entitled to a capped amount of financial support for independent legal advice. When you are asked to sign the waiver, you will also already know how much is being offered to you by the Scheme.
Until you accept an offer under the Scheme, you will still have the right to bring a case to court if you wish. If you have received a court settlement in respect of the circumstances experienced and relating to the same time period in the institution or institutions that is being applied for, you will not be eligible to apply for a general payment or work-related payment. However, you may still be eligible for health supports.
Further information is available in the Payment Scheme Information Booklet.
Yes. We recognise that for many survivors and former residents their experiences in these institutions continue to impact them greatly today. We are committed to ensuring that support is available for anyone who may need it. Professional counselling support is available, free of charge, for former residents of Mother and Baby and County Home Institutions. Full details are available.