The Accommodation Recognition Payment for property owners providing housing to those fleeing the war in Ukraine will be reduced from €800 to €600 under a proposal set to go before the Cabinet, reports RTE.
This reduction in the monthly payment will not take effect immediately but is expected to be implemented within the next three months to allow time for adjustments.
The Government argues that the cut is necessary to limit the potential effects of the payments on the rental market, reports RTE.
Minister for Children, Disability, and Equality Norma Foley will inform the Government of her broader plan to extend the revised payment until March next year.
The scheme, introduced in 2022, was designed to acknowledge the generosity of individuals offering accommodation in their homes and properties to Ukrainians.
Since its launch, €272 million has been distributed to 22,900 hosts, reports RTE.
The proposal to prolong the scheme from 31 March 2025 to the end of March 2026 aligns with the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive.
The Cabinet will be told that this policy supports transitioning away from using tourism accommodations for housing individuals benefiting from temporary protection in Ireland.
The proposal will be presented to the Dáil and Seanad for approval this week.
Angie Gough, Co-founder and Chief Executive of Helping Irish Hosts, expressed concerns that hosts are feeling uneasy about the planned reduction, reports RTE.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, she stated: “People are feeling very uncertain. Just to give you a sense of scale, there are currently 39,000 Ukrainians being hosted in over 19,000 properties and shared homes across the country. Of these, 56% are living in close quarters with their hosts, sharing kitchens, bathrooms, and other household spaces. It’s an unprecedented situation, and when you put those numbers together, it’s like filling the Aviva Stadium,” reports RTE.
“And if you consider everyone who has participated in hosting at any point over the three years of the scheme or even before it, that would fill Croke Park. The response has been incredible,” reports RTE.
However, Ms. Gough criticized the way in which hosts have been informed about the changes, calling it “disappointing.”
“The way decisions about what happens next are—or are not—communicated to those who stepped up when the State needed them is really disappointing. We have attempted to engage in discussions about what a responsible tapering off of the payment should look like. Seventy-three percent of hosts say they can only continue providing accommodation because of this payment,” Ms. Gough added, reports RTE.
O’Callaghan to Request Government Approval for EU Asylum Pact
Meanwhile, Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan will seek Cabinet approval for the National Implementation Plan of the EU Migration and Asylum Pact before it is submitted to the European Commission.
The minister will inform the Cabinet that this plan represents the most significant reform of Ireland’s asylum laws in decades and marks a key step toward developing a stronger and more structured migration system, reports RTE.
Set to take effect in June 2026, the pact introduces a new EU-wide framework for managing migration.
Its goal is to promote a fair distribution of responsibility while strengthening governance of asylum policies across the European Union, reports RTE.
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