A leading Irish missionary has said that it is his understanding that Irish missionaries who return to Ireland are receiving non-contributory pension payments.However Fr Eamon Aylward, head of the Irish Missionaries Union (IMU), said that a problem might arise with regard to missionaries who only returned for a temporary stay.
Fr Aylward was responding to a story in the Irish Times on Monday which said that about 100 religious missionaries have had claims for non-contributory pension payments rejected during temporary stays in Ireland.
Fr Aylward said that he had not previously been made aware of the issue, but that he understood that returning missionaries, or any other returning Irish citizen had to have residence in Ireland for at least two years before they could qualify for the non-contributory pension.
A requirement to be habitually resident in Ireland was introduced as a condition for most forms of social assistance before the accession of Poland and other new EU members states in May 2004.
Official figures released last week showed that the restrictions have affected 1,684 returned Irish emigrants and other Irish citizens who have not been living here on a regular basis.
The new law was introduced to prevent “welfare tourism”, the phenomenon where non-Irish citizens might migrate to Ireland to take advantage of our welfare system.
In total about 10 per cent of claims from Irish citizens that required detailed examination to determine if they had complied with habitual residency condition rules have been rejected.
Fr Aylward said that an issue could arise where missionaries returning home for a temporary stay might not be eligible for pension rights. Missionaries might return temporarily to care for sick relatives, for study purposes or for ongoing formation.
He acknowledged that the Government couldn't make special provision for missionaries, who had to be treated the same as other citizens for the purposes of social welfare policy.
EU legislation prohibits discrimination between nationals of different member states in relation to social security entitlements.
If Irish nationals who are not normally resident here were allowed to claim benefits while on short visits home, this entitlement would have to be extended to all EU nationals, officials say.
However, groups such as the Crosscare Migrant Project told the Irish Times that the restrictions were often applied inconsistently and are a deterrent for Irish emigrants thinking of returning home.
The group's spokesman, Joe O'Brien, said returning emigrants were advised not to completely cut links with the country they were returning from.
This is because some returning emigrants end up leaving Ireland again within a relatively short period of time.
"This goes directly against what is required of the habitual residency condition. Claimants must demonstrate that they severed links with the US, for example, through a terminated tenancy or closed bank account," he said.
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