Turns out there a pretty good bonus to turning 100 in this country.
The Centenarian Bounty, as it is known, is an award from the Irish Government which is given to people once they reach the age of 100. They are awarded €2,540.
It was created by President Douglas Hyde and the description about the award on President.ie is as follows:
“People born on the island of Ireland and who have reached their 100th birthday receive a special message from the President of Ireland, wishing them a happy birthday and congratulating them for their longevity. The letter is accompanied by an award made by the President of Ireland.
This scheme, often referred to as “the Centenarian Bounty”, is open to people living in Ireland who have reached 100 years, as well as to Irish citizens born on the island of Ireland who have reached 100 years and who are living outside of the State.”
As it stands the rules only come into play for people who were born in this country but they can still get the Centenarian Bounty if they no longer live here.
Last year there were 417 100th birthdays in total, but 176 of them were living abroad.
All those birthday gifts really add up with The Irish Sun revealing that the Government paid out €1,096,314 last year alone.
