Minister for Finance Jack Chambers told the Dáil that carers play a fundamental role in Irish society, adding that the Government is committed to supporting individuals and families with caring responsibilities.
To this end, he said the Home Carer Tax Credit will be increased by €150, while the Single Person Child Carer Credit will also rise by €150.
The Incapacitated Child Tax Credit will see an increase of €300 and the Dependent Relative Tax Credit by €60.
The Blind Tax Credit will also be increased by €300, which the Minister noted is the first increase to this credit in many years.
The weekly social protection payment will increase by €12 per week.
Minister for Public Expenditure Pascal Donohoe announced the change as part of a €1.2 billion social protection package, which he said was targeted at those with the greatest need.
The Domiciliary Care Allowance will increase by €20, while the Carer's Support Grant will rise by €150 to €2,000.
The disregard for the Carer’s Allowance means test will also rise to €625 for a single person and €1,250 for a couple.
For families, there will be a €15 increase to maternity, paternity, adoptive and parents’ payments.
New parents will also receive a treble child benefit payment in their child’s first month, representing a €420 payment.
The Qualified Child payment will increase by €4 for under 12s, and €8 for over 12s.
Meanwhile the Hot School Meal programme will be extended to all remaining primary schools next year.
In addition, Minister Donohoe said a further €1 billion would be put towards an October double payment for recipients of long-term social protection payments.
This, he said, would benefit nearly 1.4m people – including pensioners, carers, lone parents, the long-term unemployed and those with disabilities.
Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe said that two double payments of Child Benefit will be made to all qualifying households in November and December in an effort to provide further support to families raising children.
There will also be a double payment of the Foster Care Allowance.
The Minister said that to ensure that supports are targeted to the families that need them most, a €400 lump sum payment will be made to recipients of the Working Family Payment later this year.
Budget 2025 also provides a lump sum payment of €100 per child to recipients of Qualified Child Increase payments.
The Minister also said that funding for the National Childcare Scheme will increase by a further 44%, which means that parents will see full-time childcare costs reduce by an additional €1,100 next year.
Meanwhile, a €336m increase is being provided for Disability Services, which will facilitate additional residential care beds, more respite provision, additional home support hours and a day service place for school leavers
