2 weeks Ago By Adam Higgins
THE price of a pint won’t be touched in Budget 2025. But the cost of a package of cigarettes will rise and vapes will be hit with a new tax in Tuesday’s announcement. The Irish Sun on Sunday understands that families are set to be the big winners with a double child benefit paid before Christmas , all exam fees for schoolkids waived and school transport fees frozen.
We can also reveal that a decision has been made not to raise the excise tax on alcohol — meaning there will be no change in the already hefty price of a pint. However, the price of a pack of cigarettes is set to rise, with one source predicting that 30 cents could be added to the cost. And vapes are set to be hit by a new tax that will see the price of puffing products rise next year.
The double child benefit payment will be part of a €1.5billion cost of living package that will also include double payments for a range of other welfare supports. All Leaving Cert and Junior Cert fees will be waived for 2025 — saving exam year students around €115.
School transport fees will be frozen at the current reduced levels of €50 for a primary student and €75 for post primary. And the free schoolbook scheme will be expanded to include all students, including Fifth and Sixth years, while college fees will be slashed by €1,000. THERE are seven upcoming money changes that should ease the pain on people's pockets this month, including a €462 payment set to be paid in just weeks.
Electricity & Gas Price Cut Electric Ireland has confirmed that it will cut its electricity and gas prices from November 1. The country's biggest electricity provider confirmed that both its standard unit rate of electricity and standard gas rate will be reduced by three per cent for over 1.2 million customers.
This will save households around €45 a year on their electricity and €40 a year on their gas on average. Clothing and Footwear Allowance The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is a payment to help families buy clothing and shoes for their children returning to school. Children ages four to 11 are eligible for a payment rate of €160 while a child aged 12 to 22 will see a payment of €285.
Most eligible parents will have had to allowance paid out automatically - but you can apply up until September 30 on your My Welfare account if you have not received it. Fuel Allowance The Fuel Allowance is a major payment aimed at covering the cost of heating your home for a 28 week period from September to April and will be paid out to thousands on September 23, 2024. To qualify for the payment you must be over 70 or getting a qualifying social welfare payment and satisfy a means test while living alone or with one of the exceptions listed here .
It can be paid out for 28 weeks in €33 payments which you will receive with your other social welfare payments but people can opt to receive the amount in two lump sums of €462. Student Grants Maintenance grants for students are set to increase by €615 for all non-adjacent rates and by 10 per cent for adjacent rates. There is also changes to the postgraduate tuition fee grant which will increase by €1,000 for students in the 2023/2024 academic year.
And students who qualify for the Free Fees Scheme, will see the Student Contribution be reduced by €1,000 in the 2023/2024 academic year. Those who have already paid will receive a refund. From this month the income threshold to qualify for the 100 per cent Student Contribution will increase to €55,924.
Hot School Meals In July, Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys announced an additional 168 primary schools would receive Hot School Meals in the term starting in September 2024. This means 345,000 primary school children are now eligible to receive hot school lunches. Childcare Scheme The National Childcare Scheme's subsidy , which can be used with any childcare provider who is participating and it paid directly to them, will increase from this month.
From September 2, 2024 the minimum rate for the National Childcare Scheme subsidies increased from €1.40 to €2.14 per hour.
Free Book Scheme An extension of the Free School Books Scheme means parents and guardians of students in Junior Cycle years in post-primary schools should not be asked to buy or rent any school books in the 2024/2025 school year under the scheme. This applies to students enrolled in secondary schools in the Free Education Scheme and will see free schoolbooks and core classroom resources provided. Budget negotiations will continue across the weekend but a series of measures have already been agreed.
These include an energy credit of €250 for every household , a rise in the pension and bonus payments for people on the Carer’s Allowance, Disability Allowance and the Working Family Payment. Finance Minister Jack Chambers is also bringing forward a tax package aimed at giving workers a break, with cuts worth close to €1,000 for people earning up to €45,000. Workers earning less than €75,000 will have their USC rate cut from four per cent to three per cent, while the band for the higher rate of tax will be raised from €42,000 up to €44,000.
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