Transport

Mobility Allowance

This is a means-tested supplementary monthly payment from the Health Service Executive (HSE) for people between the ages of 16 and 66 with severe disabilities who are unable to walk.

Apply to: your Local Health Office

Disabled Person’s Parking Card

The Disabled Person’s Parking Card (also known as the European Parking Card) is for people, whether they are drivers or passengers, with severe disabilities which affect their mobility, including people who are registered as blind. The card costs €25 (€50 to replace a lost card) and it applies to the person rather than the car and allows for parking in disabled parking spaces. Generally, the card is not issued to anyone under five years of age.

Apply to: Irish Wheelchair Association, National Mobility Centre, Ballinagappa Road, Clane, Co. Kildare or to Parking Card Section, Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland, Ballindine, Co. Mayo

Disabled Driver and Disabled Passenger Tax Relief

Under the terms of this scheme, you can claim a reduction or a repayment of vehicle registration tax (VRT), repayment of value-added tax (VAT) on the purchase of a vehicle and repayment of VAT on the cost of adapting a vehicle, up to a maximum of €9,525 for a disabled driver and €15,875 for a disabled passenger.

Relief is limited to a vehicle that has been specially constructed or adapted for use by a disabled person and that has an engine size of less than 2,000cc in the case of the driver and 4,000cc in the case of the passenger.

If you qualify for tax relief under the scheme, you can also claim repayment of excise duty on fuel used in your vehicle for the transport of a disabled person, up to a maximum of 600 gallons per year. In addition, if you qualify under the scheme, your vehicle may be exempt from the payment of annual road tax on application to a Motor Tax Office.

Apply to: Central Repayments Office, Office of the Revenue Commissioners, Coolshannagh, Monaghan

Exemption from Toll Charges

Disabled drivers and disabled passengers with specially adapted vehicles in Ireland are exempt from toll charges on national roads throughout Ireland. A toll is a levy on each vehicle that passes through a designated toll road. To obtain a National Toll Roads (NTR) Concessionary Travel Card, you are required to complete an application form, supplying proof that you are a disabled driver or passenger and that you are driving (or are a passenger in) and adapted vehicle.

Apply to: National Toll Roads PLC Concessionary Travel Section East-Link Toll Bridge Ltd York Road, Ringsend, Dublin 4.

Motorised Transport Grant

This is a means-tested grant paid by the HSE towards the purchase and/or adaptation of a car by a person with a severe disability where the car is essential to obtain or retain employment. The grant can be made to a self-employed person.

Apply to: your Local Health Office

Adaptations and Driving

The Irish Wheelchair Association and the Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland provide advice on suitable car adaptations to meet individual needs. They run driving schools for people with disabilities and can provide information and advice on all aspects of motoring.

Contact: Irish Wheelchair Association, National Mobility Centre, Ballinagappa Road, Clane, Co. Kildare or to Parking Card Section, Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland, Ballindine, Co. Mayo