FAQ Guide: Making an appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office

If you want to appeal a decision on a social welfare payment, you can either ask the DSP to review its decision or make an appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

Citizens Information has put together the following useful advice on the differences between a review and an appeal:

Review of a DSP Descision:

– DSP re-examines a decision they already made;
– You can ask for a review of a decision on any social welfare payment;

– No time limit for requesting a review of a decision.

Appealing a DSP decision:

– SWAO examines your case and makes a decision;

– You can only appeal a decision on certain social welfare payments;

– You must appeal within 60 days of a DSP decision.

You can decide to submit a review or an appeal, or do both.

You should submit your request for a review to the relevant department who decided on your original application. You should:

– make your request for a review in writing;

– give reasons as to why you want the review; and

– give any evidence you can.

The review process has not been changed by the new regulations.

You must fill in a Notice of Appeal Against a Social Welfare Decision form (also called an SWAO1 form).
You can submit your appeal to the SWAO by post or online.

Pensions
• Death benefit
• State Pension (Contributory)
• State Pension (Non-Contributory)
• Widow’s, Widower’s or Surviving Civil Partner’s Pension (Contributory)
• Widow’s, Widower’s or Surviving Civil Partner’s Pension (Non-Contributory)

Working Age Income and Employment Supports
• Adoptive Benefit
• Benefit Payment for 65 Year Olds
• Deserted Wife’s Allowance
• Deserted Wife’s Benefit
• Farm Assist
• Homemakers
• Jobseeker’s Benefit for Self Employed
• Jobseeker’s Transitional Payment
• Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Jobseeker’s Benefit
• Maternity Benefit
• One-Parent Family Payment
• Pandemic Unemployment Payment (for decisions dating from 5/8/20 onwards)
• Parent’s Benefit
• Partial Capacity Benefit
• Paternity Benefit
• Supplementary Welfare Allowance (includes Rent Supplement0
• Treatment Benefits
Illness, Disability and Carers
• Blind Pension
• Carer’s Support Grant
• Carer’s Allowance
• Carer’s Benefit
• Disability Allowance
• Disablement Benefit
• Domiciliary Care Allowance
• Illness Benefit
• Enhanced Illness Benefit for Covid-19
• Incapacity Supplement
• Injury Benefit
• Invalidity Pension
• Medical Care
Children
• Back to Work Family Dividend
• Child Benefit
• Guardian’s Payment (Contributory)
• Guardian’s Payment (Non-Contributory)
• Widowed Parent Grant
• Working Family Payment
Other
• Class of PRSI payable
• Entitlement to Become a Voluntary Contributor
• Insurability of Employment (including Self-Employment)
• Liable Relatives
• Recoverable Benefits and Assistance

• Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance
• Back-to-Work Schemes
• Credits (Award of)
• Free Travel Scheme
• Household Benefits
• Fuel Allowance
• Household Budgeting
• Overpayment (recovery under Code of Practice)
• Part-time Job Incentive
• PRSI Refunds
• School Meals
• Back to Education Allowance
• Community Welfare Services
• VTOS (Department of Education)
• Supplementary Welfare Allowance Exceptional Needs and Urgent Needs Payments (these are ‘one off’ payments cannot be appealed)

Your appeal should explain why you disagree with the decision and provide supporting documentation or proof. You should include details of the original claim that was submitted, a copy of the letter you got from the DSP Deciding Officer that told you of the decision and your PPS number. You need to show the SWAO that you met the conditions for the payment at the time of your application for that payment.

Since the new regulations came into effect on 28 April 2025, you have 60 days to appeal a decision from the date of notification of the decision of a Deciding Officer or determination of a Designated Person as the case may be. (This used to be 21 days.)

The Chief Appeals Officer has discretion to accept an appeal if it is submitted after the 60 day period if they are satisfied that there is reasonable cause for the delay AND there are reasonable, non-trivial, prima facie grounds for appeal. You should explain the reason for the delay and provide documentary evidence where possible, if you submit an appeal after the 60-day period.

However, the Chief Appeals Officer will not accept any appeals submitted after 180 days from the date of notification of the decision.

If you are outside the time limit for an appeal, you can request the Department to review its decision. You can then appeal the review decision to the SWAO within 60 days.

We recommend that you request an in-person oral hearing to ensure that the Appeals Officer has a full appreciation of the issues before them.

An oral hearing is when an Appeals Officer hears your reasons for your appeal from you in-person.
This hearing can take place at a set location, virtually, or by phone.

You can request an oral hearing when you submit your Notice of Appeal Against a Social Welfare Decision Form . You should include the reasons why you want one.

If the Appeals Officer decides that an oral hearing is not necessary, you will be provided with the reasons why. If they decide that an oral hearing is needed, you will be notified of the date in advance.

There is no fee to appeal a social welfare decision to the SWAO.

After you submit your appeal, you should receive an acknowledgement from the SWAO.

The SWAO will contact the section in the Department that assessed your original application and let them know that you have appealed their decision. The section in the DSP examines your appeal and reviews their decision. In some cases, new evidence is examined by a social welfare inspector, or by a medical assessor.

At this stage, the DSP can make a revised decision on your application, but only if the decision would be in your favour.

If the original decision remains the same, it is sent back to the SWAO, and your appeal is examined by an Appeals Officer. The Appeals Officer may also ask you to provide further information on the appeal, and can allow changes to the Notice of Appeal Against a Social Welfare Decision Form .

The Appeals Officer can decide your appeal based on written evidence or following an oral hearing.

If you have been asked to attend an oral hearing you can go alone or bring someone with you for support.

You can be accompanied by a family member, or with the consent of the Appeals Officer, any other person.

You can have someone act on your behalf at the oral hearing. This person is called a representative. You must ask the SWAO for permission, if you want to bring a representative to act on your behalf. Your representative could be from an organisation like the Citizens Information Service, a welfare rights service, or it could be a friend or family member who is 18 years or older.

The Appeals Officer will be at the oral hearing. The Department may also send a representative.

The Appeals Officer will give you their decision, along with the reasons for their decision, in writing. The decision is also sent to the Department.

The decision of the Appeals Officer should be issued no later than 21 days after the appeal is determined.

You can request a review of the Appeals Officer’s decision, if you have new evidence or facts since the Appeals Officer’s decision or if you believe an error was made by the Appeals Officer in relation to the law or the facts.

If a review has taken place and you still disagree with the final decision of the SWAO, you can ask the Office of the Ombudsman to examine your case.

Yes, you can. If you wish to withdraw your appeal, you may do so by sending a notice to the Chief Appeals Officer.

Community Law & Mediation’s Casebase is a free-to-access database of reports on more than 100 social welfare appeals, some of which progressed all the way to the High Court. The reports have been supplied not only by Community Law & Mediation, but also by other law centres and advocacy organisations who help people access their social welfare entitlements. You will find cases relating to Family Income Supplement, Habitual Residence Condition, State Pension, Child Benefit, Jobseekers Allowance, Illness Benefit, Disability Allowance, Rent Supplement and much more.