Understanding the Dependent Relative Tax Credit

Who can claim the Dependent Relative Tax Credit ?

You may claim the Dependent Relative Tax Credit where you maintain any of the below at your own expense:

• A relative, or spouses relative, who is unable due to old age or infirmity to maintain themselves.
• Your widowed father or mother – or your spouse/civil partner’s father or mother – who is the  surviving civil partner regardless of the state of their health.
• Your son/daughter, or a child of your civil partner who resides with you and on whose services they are compelled to depend due to old age or infirmity.

This tax credit of €245 is reduced to nil where the income of the relative exceeds €16,156 (which is usually equivalent to the maximum State Pension Contributory for an individual aged 80 years or over claiming the living alone allowance and Island allowance plus a maximum of €280 per year).  All of your dependent relative’s income is included for the income limit purposes. This includes their social welfare payments, pensions and deposit interest.

The tax credit will be divided if more than one person maintains the dependent relative.

The dependent relative tax credit cannot be claimed in addition to the incapacitated child tax credit for the same individual.

How to claim the Dependent Relative Tax Credit

PAYE customers can make a claim using PAYE Services in myAccount as follows:

Making a claim for the current year:

• sign into myAccount
• click the ‘Manage your tax’ link in PAYE Services
• select ‘Claim tax credits’
• select ‘Dependant relative tax credit’ under the category ‘You and your
• family’.

Making a claim for a previous year:

• click on ‘Review your tax 2019 – 2022’ link in PAYE Services
• request ‘Statement of Liability’
• click on ‘Complete Income Tax Return’
• in the ‘Tax Credits & Reliefs’ page select ‘You and your family’ and
• ‘Dependent relative tax credit’
• complete and submit the form

For more information on other benefits and allowances read:

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