There has been an increase in the “misuse and abuse” of the State’s monthly payment for those accommodating Ukrainian refugees in their homes and private properties, a charity that oversees the pledging of housing has warned.
Helping Irish Hosts (HIH), the grassroots charity formed in 2022 to support people seeking to host displaced Ukrainians, contacted the Government last year to warn it had logged an “increased number of incidents” where the accommodation recognition payment (ARP) was being “misused”.
The ARP is a tax-free monthly payment of €800 for those providing accommodation to Ukrainians who arrive in Ireland under the EU Temporary Protection Directive.
Documents released under a Freedom of Information request reveal HIH found some hosts were receiving “top-up payments, raising concerns about tenancy rights and tax obligations”. Other issues such as “market distortion and potential exploitation” have surfaced, it warned in its prebudget submission to the Department of Integration in September.
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In a previous briefing note from March, the charity warned the misuse of the payment risked attracting bad actors, leading to “fraudulent behaviour”, causing reputational risk to the department and potential negative media coverage. It urged the Government to introduce a compulsory registration process for all ARP recipients to allow for follow-up checks at the property.
A spokesman for the Department of Social Protection, which administers the payment, said it carries out a “range of control measures across all its schemes to prevent, detect and deter fraud”. Checks are also carried out using data matching with departmental and other records to confirm the ongoing eligibility of claimants, while social welfare inspector home visits are carried out when necessary, he said.
Some 43 per cent of Ukrainian beneficiaries of temporary protection (BOTPs), or 22,590 people, are being hosted in Irish households, according to the latest Government data published in mid-December. Of these, 12,788 are living in pledged accommodation and 9,802 have been accommodated through the “offer a home” scheme.
Another 29,832 Ukrainians are living in State-provided accommodation. A total of 112,761 Ukrainians BOTPs have registered in Ireland since March 2022. However, it’s estimated a quarter of these have left Ireland.
HIH describes the hosting programme as a “uniquely Irish success story” and a “remarkable overachievement”, given it originally aspired to house 5 per cent of Ukrainians through pledges.
The scheme, which enables Ukrainian refugees to live in a home rather than State accommodation, is saving the State “in the region of €386 million per year”, according to HIH estimates.
The charity continues to receive a “steady daily flow of pledges” and says the programme is “positively impacting people’s lives” and creates “community cohesion, cross-cultural understanding and genuine integration”.
However, it warns that 63 per cent of all hosting arrangements are happening without oversight from the consortium of charities leading the programme. If the ARP scheme “actively encourages people to go it alone”, the State must provide supports including regular check-ins, mediation services and emergency response protocols to handle any potential conflicts, recommends the submission.
FOI documents also show HIH has repeatedly called for the ARP scheme to be extended to include refugees who have been granted status to live in Ireland but cannot secure private housing and remain in direct provision.
The sole focus on Ukrainian refugees is “creating a disparity of support for refugees from other regions”, it writes. A pilot pledge programme to include refugees from other countries would foster a more “inclusive and equitable system”, ease pressure on the international protection system, reduce costs and allow more refugees to begin building their lives in Ireland, it suggests.
Asked whether there were plans to extend the payment to support household hosting non-Ukrainian refugees, a Department of Integration spokesman said the Government had “not considered the application of the ARP model beyond its current function”.
The social protection spokesman said any alleged fraudulent activity in relation to the ARP scheme should be flagged through the dedicated website ARP@welfare.ie.
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