Survivors of mother-and-baby homes are stepping up their campaign to help those who now live in the UK.
There are concerns that former residents of these institutions are not claiming the redress they are entitled to because they risk losing out on means-tested benefits.
The British government has pledged to change this through what is known as Philomena's Law - but the legislation has not been enacted, leaving thousands of survivors in limbo.
Among them is Rosemary Adaser, who lived in a mother and baby home as a child, and later gave birth in a home. She now lives in west London and she is reluctant to claim the redress she is entitled to.
She said that it was a "major oversight" in the scheme not to consider the impact that payments would have on social welfare claims in the UK, where up to 17,000 eligible survivors live.
Speaking on RTÉ's News At One, she said: "We are scared because should we accept compensation, the state supports that we rely on will cease and then we're left in a state of poverty. And that's very scary at our age."
Ms Adaser said the group most impacted by this are people who were on lower incomes, who could not pay into private pensions.
"So the fear is actually that we can't afford to accept the pension because the social care that is free to us right now, the additional financial supports that we enjoy, can be removed and that taxation would also be a factor."
'Difficult to engage with the redress scheme itself'
Ms Adaser said while it was difficult for some survivors to be reminded of their past traumas, most believed that they were entitled to the compensation. She said there were more practical problems.
"It's actually quite difficult to engage with the redress scheme itself. You have to be computer literate for starters. The portal system they have there, is not very informative, doesn't give you a lot of information at all.
"So those of us are lucky to have access to Irish centres, like the Irish in Britain in Camden, Liverpool and Birmingham. We're very fortunate, but there'll be thousands who are living in rural areas without that kind of support. What are they going to do?"
Ms Adaser said her situation contrasted with that of her twin brother who lives in Ireland.
"He claimed his compensation - got it within weeks. And I think that's why he's feeling so aggrieved on my behalf, because we endured the same degree of abuse as very young children in Ireland's mother-and-baby institutions.
"But while he is sitting pretty with his little bit of compensation, I'm over in the UK too terrified to apply for mine."
Last month, the British government said it would support legislation known as Philomena's Law, named after Philomena Lee, to ensure that people do not lose their benefits.
"That was a very big win on the 13th of March 2026," said lawyer Caoilfhionn Gallagher.
"There was an acknowledgement at the UK-Ireland summit when the prime minister and the Taoiseach spoke together that there should be a disregard.
"So there's been a principled acceptance in March 2026 that this should happen."
'We don't yet have Philomena's Law on the statute book'
Ms Gallagher said there is a two-fold problem with the proposed disregard.
"Although there was that agreement in principle, we don't yet have Philomena's Law on the statute book.
"And that's why Rosemary (Adaser) followed up her earlier threat of legal action against the UK government, by asking them, now that they've made the in-principle agreement, to actually bring in guidance from the Department of Work and Pensions to make clear that people shouldn't have their benefits deducted while we're waiting for Philomena's Law to become law.
"I'm pleased to say she got that guidance last week, so that's positive, but it's only guidance and we don't yet have it on the statute books.
"That's why Rosemary's now asking for this to be in the King's Speech next month and she would like support from Irish politicians and from the Irish public, in putting pressure on the UK government to do right by these 13,000 survivors of institutional abuse in Ireland who've made their homes in Britain," she added.
Ms Gallagher also wants the disregard to apply retrospectively to those who already applied for compensation.
"The second thing is that we know that there were about 770 people who claimed compensation between February 2024 when the scheme opened and the 13th of March 2026 when the concession was made by Prime Minister Starmer in Cork.
"And we are very worried, that of those 770 people, a sizeable number of them are likely to have had a financial penalty. And that is not right."
Ms Gallagher said she thinks this is an issue for the Irish Government to address.
"That's why we're now saying the Irish Government, Irish politicians and the Irish people need to put pressure on the British government to do all they can to now convert this in practice into the resolution that survivors need.
"Just speaking very frankly, many of the survivors are elderly. They're not well. I'm aware of survivors who've died while waiting for this, who didn't claim their compensation.
"Survivors who are very, very elderly and unwell. And time is not on their side. We need to get a move on here," she added.