Warmer Homes Scheme

You must own and live in the home as your main residence. It must be in the Republic of Ireland and have been both built and occupied before 1 January 2006. You must not be planning a significant refurbishment by other parties. Apartments can qualify, but SEAI must receive your management company’s consent before assessments or work can proceed.

You must receive at least one of these payments:

• Fuel Allowance under the National Fuel Scheme.
• Job Seekers Allowance for over six months, and have a child under seven.
• Working Family Payment.
• One-Parent Family Payment.
• Domiciliary Care Allowance.
• Carers Allowance, while living with the person you care for.
• Disability Allowance for over six months, and have a child under seven.

The Household Benefits Package on its own does not qualify. SEAI checks the qualifying payment with the Department of Social Protection.

Every home needs a published Building Energy Rating (BER), which measures its energy performance from A, the most efficient, to G, the least efficient. If your home does not have one, SEAI arranges it free before the survey. Homes built before 1993 with a BER of E, F or G receive priority for surveys and work. Both priority conditions must apply; they are not the eligibility test for all homes.

The survey and contractor assessment must find suitable work. Wall insulation is not usually provided to pre-1940 or stone homes, although other upgrades may qualify. The scheme does not insulate dormer or converted-attic spaces that need bespoke solutions. Suitable construction and ventilation also determine which insulation can be installed.

For repeat applications, the previous survey date matters. Homes surveyed before 1 July 2018 can be considered for a revisit if all other criteria are met. Under the current application form, homes surveyed on or after that date have already been assessed for the available range of works and cannot receive additional works.

Earlier upgrades can restrict a revisit even when the survey was before July 2018. If the programme previously installed a heating system, you cannot receive any further programme work. Previous external-wall insulation excludes further wall upgrades; SEAI’s revisit table also says you should not reapply because no further programme work will be provided.

If you remain eligible for a revisit, full attic insulation, cavity-wall insulation and small measures already provided are not repeated. An attic that could not previously be insulated may qualify once cleared, unless it has been converted into a room. Previous internal-wall insulation may leave other walls eligible, and concrete walls may qualify for external insulation instead; timber-frame homes do not qualify for external insulation. These possibilities do not override the earlier-participation exclusions, and the survey determines what remains suitable.

Estado

Abierto continuamente

Restricciones de la ronda

• Applications are assessed before suitable works are allocated.
• Homes built before 1993 with BER E, F or G receive priority for surveys and works.
• Waiting times vary; the full process can take more than two years.

Read the scheme guidelines, then apply through the Warmer Homes online portal. Have your MPRN—the 11-digit electricity-supply reference on your bill—your address and Eircode, date of birth, PPS number and ownership evidence ready. The programme page links the Carers Allowance confirmation form and apartment consent form where needed.

For an online application, provide ownership evidence matching your name and address and dated within twelve months: a mortgage statement, home insurance policy, title deeds, solicitor’s ownership letter, or Local Property Tax letter with a utility bill from the last six months. Do not upload password-protected files. Applications based on Job Seekers Allowance or Disability Allowance also need the child’s birth certificate. The Carers Allowance confirmation must be completed and stamped by a Department of Social Protection official.

You can also use the signed postal form and send its checklist and documents to Warmer Homes Scheme, SEAI, PO Box 119, Cahirciveen, Co. Kerry. The postal form accepts older ownership evidence when accompanied by a utility bill dated within the last six months. If you have only just started receiving a qualifying payment, SEAI asks you to wait five to six weeks after the first payment before applying; the separate over-six-month conditions for Job Seekers Allowance and Disability Allowance still apply.

SEAI checks eligibility, arranges a BER where needed and then surveys the home. There is a waiting list, subject to the priority rules above; the programme currently says the full process can take more than two years. Waiting-time estimates are not completion guarantees.

Wait for SEAI’s approval and assigned contractor. Work arranged with someone outside that appointment is not funded. The contractor carries out a detailed assessment, agrees the work and timing with you and makes the final suitability decision. SEAI recommends a written contract between you and the contractor before work starts. Obtain all required permissions before work begins, and provide access for assessment, installation and any follow-up work.

After completion, SEAI arranges a final BER and inspects a sample of homes; the contractor must address defects identified in an inspection. Keep the works documentation and warranties. Provide requested information and arrange full access within seven days of SEAI sending a written request. SEAI decides case by case whether exceptional circumstances excuse failure to meet its information requirements. Failure to meet the scheme terms can lead to cancellation or recovery of the funding.

If you sell the home within five years of completion, give SEAI thirty days’ prior written notice. SEAI may require repayment of some or all of the value of the works within one calendar month of its demand. Breaches of the scheme terms can also lead to full recovery within one calendar month.