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Home / Guides / Household Benefits Package

Over 70? There's no means test on this one

Grants & Energy · Ireland •5 min read •Updated 28 August 2026
P Zak Carolan · The People's PocketChecked against gov.ie, 28 August 2026

The Household Benefits Package pays €1.15 a day towards your electricity or gas bill and gives you a free TV licence. That's roughly €420 a year off the bill, before the licence is counted at all.

And here is the part that is easy to miss. If you are 70 or over, gov.ie says it plainly: it is not means tested, and you do not need to be getting a qualifying payment. It does not matter what is in your bank account, what you own, or whether you have a private pension.

Our Freedom of Information finding. We asked the Department of Social Protection how many older households are missing this. Its own analysis put it at an estimated 116,000 households with someone aged 70 or over not receiving the package — out of roughly half a million such households. Released to The People's Pocket under FOI, ref FOI-2026-30097.

The package at a glance

  • What you get: €1.15 a day towards electricity or gas, plus a free TV licence
  • Roughly: €420 a year on the energy allowance alone
  • Paid: into your bank account or post office, first Tuesday of each month
  • Aged 70+: no means test, no qualifying payment needed
  • Aged 66–70: available if you meet the conditions
  • Under 66: available on Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension, Blind Pension or Carer's Allowance
  • Limit: one package per household, and you must live in Ireland full time
  • Apply: MyWelfare.ie, or form HB1 by post

Who qualifies

If you're 70 or over

You qualify. There is no means test and no requirement to be on any other social welfare payment. The only conditions are that you live in Ireland full time and that nobody else in the house is already getting the package.

If you're between 66 and 70

You may still get it if you meet the necessary conditions. Where a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant does not have a qualifying payment of their own, a means test applies to them.

If you're under 66

You can qualify on any of these:

Only one per household. If somebody you live with already receives the Household Benefits Package, a second one cannot be paid. This catches families where an adult child has moved back in with a parent who already has it.

What it actually pays

The Free Electricity Allowance or Free Gas Allowance is €1.15 per day. It goes into your bank account or post office on the first Tuesday of every month, and the amount varies slightly with the number of days in the month.

One change worth knowing: since 8 September 2025, new applicants are paid directly to a nominated bank account or post office rather than as credit on the utility bill. People already receiving it as bill credit can stay on that arrangement while nothing else in their circumstances changes.

When you qualify, you can also apply for the free TV licence from its next renewal date, as part of the same application.

How to apply

1. Check nobody else in the house has it. Only one package is paid per household.
2. Have your details ready. Your PPS number, and your electricity account number (MPRN) or gas account number (GPRN). If you rent, this is where claims stall: your landlord must give you written confirmation that you are a tenant, the MPRN or GPRN for the address, and confirmation that you pay the energy bills yourself. Ask for all three before you start the form, not after.
3. Apply on MyWelfare.ie. You can also download form HB1 and post it to the Household Benefits Package Section, Department of Social Protection, College Road, Sligo, F91 T384.
4. Add the TV licence. Apply for it as part of the same application — it starts from the next renewal date.
Nothing about this is automatic. Nobody from the Department will ring and offer it to you. That is the single biggest reason 116,000 older households are going without.

Common questions

I have savings and a private pension. Does that rule me out?

Not if you're 70 or over. gov.ie states it is not means tested for that age group and you don't need to be getting a qualifying payment.

My son lives with me and works. Does that stop it?

Not by itself. The condition is that only one Household Benefits Package is paid per household — it isn't the same household rule that applies to Fuel Allowance, which is far stricter.

Can I get it on gas and electricity?

No. The allowance goes towards one or the other, not both.

I'm a carer under 66. Do I qualify?

You can, on Carer's Allowance — but only if you live with the person you care for.

Common questions

Is the Household Benefits Package means-tested?
Not once you are 70 or over. From 70 there is no means test at all — you do not need to be getting a State Pension, and your income and savings are irrelevant. Under 70 there is a means test, but you can also qualify without one if you are getting a qualifying payment such as Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension, Blind Pension, or Carer's Allowance where you live with the person you care for.
Can I get it if I live with other people?
Yes. You do not have to live alone, and the bills do not have to be in your name. The only restriction is that just one person per household can hold the package, so if someone you live with already receives it, it stays with them. If you live with a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant and you are under 70, there are extra conditions about their payment or means.
What is it actually worth?
The Electricity or Gas Allowance is €1.15 a day, which is about €35 a month or roughly €420 a year, paid into your bank account or post office on the first Tuesday of each month. On top of that is the Free Television Licence, worth €160 a year. Together that is close to €580 a year — but you must select the free TV licence option on the application form, because it is not added automatically.
I am over 70 and never applied — is it too late?
No. Eligibility at 70 and over is based on age, not on any assessment you could have failed, so there is nothing to have missed. It is not usually backdated, which is the reason to apply now rather than later. A Freedom of Information request to the Department in 2026 found roughly 116,000 households with someone aged 70 or over who were eligible and not receiving it.
Sources

gov.ie — Household Benefits Package, last updated 10 August 2026, and Citizens Information — Household Benefits Package. The 116,000 figure is from the Department of Social Protection's own analysis, released to The People's Pocket under Freedom of Information, ref FOI-2026-30097.

This guide is general information, not financial or tax advice. Amounts and conditions can change — always confirm the current details on gov.ie before you claim.

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