No, I am not recruiting parents to work in MI6 as the next James Bond; I am referring to becoming an Agent for your child when dealing with the Department of Social Protection.
When your child applies for Disability Allowance, appointing a parent as an Agent is an option.
This can be sensible to do if your child would struggle to collect their Disability Allowance payment or would be vulnerable when it comes to managing their finance.
This also allows parents to act on behalf of their child when dealing with the Department. Again, it is very useful if your child would struggle in their interactions with the Department.
This can be on a temporary or long-term basis. Your child may cancel or revoke an agent arrangement at any time, take over themselves or appoint another agent.
In all cases, a doctor must certify that your child is unable for the time being to manage their own financial affairs.
The agent is responsible for ensuring that the payment is used for the benefit of the child and any changes in the child’s circumstances are reported to the department.
The department may cancel an agency arrangement at any time where it has reason to believe that the arrangement is not working satisfactorily or that the payment is not being used for the benefit of the child.
For more information, click https://www.gov.ie/en/service/451fd7-authority-to-appoint-an-agent/