1.2 million social welfare recipients will receive the bonus by the end of this week.

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Pascal Donohue and Minister for Social Protection Leo Vardakar last week signed the Christmas bonus order and the bonuses will be paid from tomorrow, November 28 to Friday, December 2. https://twitter.com/Paschald/status/801558479483895808 This year, the bonus equates to 85% of the normal amount paid to social welfare recipients and the full list of those entitled to the bonus can be viewed on the Citizens Information website here. A single jobseeker who receives a weekly allowance of €188, for example, will receive a Christmas bonus of €160. A couple with two children who receive a weekly allowance of €372.40 will be entitled to a Christmas bonus of €316.50, while a single pensioner (contributory) on a weekly pension of €233.40 will receive a bonus of €198.30. The 2016 rates of payment for social welfare recipients can be viewed in full here. In a statement earlier this year announcing the social protection budget for 2017, Minister Varadkar said that the Christmas bonus scheme, which will cost €221 million, “recognises the needs of people who are long-term financially dependent on their social welfare payment for all or most of their income, such as pensioners, people with disabilities and carers”.