A MAJOR warning has been issued over a social welfare date change – as the next Bank Holiday will disrupt the payment in accounts.
The Department of Social Protection issued the alert this week.
The March Bank Holiday will cause banks and post offices to close on St. Patrick’s Day, Monday, March 17.
As a result, those expecting a social welfare payment on that day will likely receive it earlier.
It is anticipated that the payment will be available in accounts by Friday, March 14 or Saturday, March 15.
Since this bank holiday falls in the middle of March, Child Benefit payments will not be affected as these are issued on the first Tuesday of each month.
Therefore, if you receive Child Benefit, your payment will be processed as usual without any changes.
Those expecting other types of payments should be prepared for the possibility of receiving them earlier than expected due to the closure of the banks and post offices.
The rest of the bank holidays in 2025 are as follows:
- Monday, March 17 – Saint Patrick’s Day
- Monday, April 21 – Easter Monday
- Monday, May 5 – May Day
- Monday, June 2 – June Bank Holiday
- Monday, August 4 – August Bank Holiday
- Monday, October 27 – October Bank Holiday
- Thursday, December 25 – Christmas Day
- Friday, December 26 – St Stephen’s Day
This comes after a warning has been issued for thousands of social welfare recipients over a targeted scam scheme.
The Department of Social Protection has revealed that thousands of recipients received texts claiming they were “eligible” for a discount under their electricity bill as part of the Emergency Benefit Scheme.
Taking to X, they urged the social welfare recipients to “not engage with the caller” and share any sensitive information such as PPS number and bank account details.
SCAM SCHEME ALERT
They said: “If you receive such a call or text, please do not engage with the caller and do not share any part of your PPS number, Bank Account details or any other personal information with them.”
The Department of Social Protection staff never ask for such details by phone or text, and they urged people not to click on any links they send you as it may steal some personal data of your device.
The Emergency Benefit Scheme provides two payments of €125 to be credited to all domestic electricity accounts to relieve pressure in the age of the energy crisis, which gave an exceptional rise in prices.
However, people did not need to sign up or provide information to receive these payments as they are automatically applied to all domestic electricity accounts that are not low-usage electricity accounts.
They ask people to contact their bank immediately if they have shared any bank account details following a call suspected of being a scam.
And they urge people to provide any such information to a caller that they believe to be a scam call or text to contact the gardai immediately – to help prevent further scams for other people.
The increased scam texts and calls claiming to be from the department come after the Budget 2025 announcement to seek personal information for schemes such as Cost of Living Payments.
If you are entitled to a lump sum or double payment, these will be automatically paid and you do not need to apply for it.
To access information or contact the department staff, this can be done through official departmental websites, such as www.MyWelfare.ie and www.gov.ie/dsp.
Social welfare payments will be disrupted next month[/caption]
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