Housing Assistance Payment

When you are a HAP tenant

The local authority will inspect your accommodation within 8 months of the first HAP payment to your landlord, unless the accommodation has already been inspected in the last twelve months. An inspector will check that the accommodation meets the minimum standards for rented housing.

Your housing needs will have been met under HAP and you will no longer be on the local authority’s housing waiting list. However, if you wish to have access to other social housing supports, such as local authority housing or housing provided by a housing association, you can apply to the local authority to be placed on the transfer list.

If you do apply for a transfer within 2 weeks of getting the letter confirming your HAP payment, any time that you spent on the housing list can be taken into account when your local authority considers your application. If you apply for a transfer at a later date, the time that you previously spent on the housing waiting list won’t count.

Rent contribution

The weekly rent contribution payable will be based on the current ‘differential rent scheme’ for your local authority. This scheme links the rent contribution a household must pay to the household income and the ability to pay. If your income increases so does your rent contribution, and if your income decreases, the weekly rent contribution decreases accordingly. You will have to notify the local authority of any changes in your income or household size, so that your rent contribution can be recalculated. If you take up a job or increase your working hours, you will still be eligible for HAP. Check with your local authority for the details of their differential rent scheme.

Paying your landlord

The local authority will make the HAP payment to your landlord on your behalf, subject to certain conditions:

• You must pay your weekly HAP rent contribution to the local authority – if not, the local authority will stop paying your landlord
• If you get a social welfare payment at a post office, you must pay your HAP contribution through the Household Budget Scheme
• The accommodation must meet minimum standards for rented housing
• Your landlord must have current evidence of tax compliance
• You (and anyone in your household) must not engage in anti-social behaviour

All local authorities use the HAP Shared Services Centre, which is based in Limerick, to collect rents from HAP tenants and make HAP rental payments to landlords.

If your landlord requires a deposit, you will have to pay this yourself – the local authority will not pay it for you. In certain circumstances, you may be eligible to apply for assistance from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection to help with paying a deposit. If you are in emergency homeless accommodation, your local authority may help with a deposit.

Ending a HAP tenancy

You will be expected to stay in your HAP accommodation for at least 2 years, but in some situations you may be able to apply for a new HAP payment elsewhere – for example, if you are offered a job in another town or if your family grows too large for the property. You will need to contact your local authority if you are thinking of moving.

If a tenant or a landlord wishes to end a residential tenancy, they must comply with the relevant legislation. Read more on Threshold’s website.