The Nursing Home Loan Scheme is a part of the Nursing Home Support Scheme (NHSS). It is a financial instrument offered by the Irish state through the HSE as an option for new Fair Deal Scheme applicants who have a principal home or other non-cash assets.
Under it, a person approved for Fair Deal can defer the portion of their care contribution that is based on land or property assets. The HSE pays the nursing home on their behalf, and the money is collected after their death or after the sale of all or part of the asset.
For couples with joint ownership of the house, the scheme policies and loan terms matter differently than for single applicants. It determines the entire financial structure of the assessment.
In simple terms, it allows a couple who own property but may not have the cash flow to meet weekly nursing home contributions to stay in the scheme without selling their home during either partner's lifetime. Repayment is made to Revenue, not the HSE, and it functions as a charge—a simple form of mortgage—registered against the property.
Couples Who Are Qualified for the Fair Deal Nursing Home Loan Scheme in Ireland
A couple is defined as either a married couple living together or an opposite or same-sex couple living together as life partners for at least three years. It does not include relatives who live together or two adults sharing a home but not in a life partnership. That three-year threshold is often a barrier. A couple who have been cohabiting for only two years at the point of application will be assessed as two separate individuals—a significantly more expensive outcome.
Key Safeguards:
The scheme builds in several protections specifically for couples that are worth noting together:
- The partner at home always keeps at least 50% of combined income (or the non-contributory pension rate, whichever is higher)
- The first €72,000 of combined assets is always excluded
- The family home can only ever contribute 11.25% of its value (over three years) when one partner is in care
- The Nursing Home Loan can be deferred across both partners' lifetimes—the house does not have to be sold until both have died or the property is voluntarily transferred
- Neither partner will ever pay more than the actual cost of care
How the Financial Assessment Works for a Couple
The financial assessment is the mechanism that calculates what a couple contributes toward care.
Income
When one person, who is part of a couple, is applying for the Fair Deal Scheme in Ireland, only half of the couple's total combined income is assessed. This is compared to the 80% of their full annual income that a single person pays.
Assets
The couple pays 7.5% of the value of assets per year between them, meaning each contributes 3.75% annually—half the rate of a single applicant. The first €72,000 of their combined assets is excluded from the assessment entirely.
One of the most important safeguards in the scheme for couples is this:
If a spouse or partner remains at home while the other is in nursing home care, they are guaranteed to keep at least 50% of the couple's combined income. This prevents the partner at home from becoming financially destitute because 80% of their income goes toward care costs.
The 3-Year Cap on the Family Home—What it Means for Couples
If a couple is part of the scheme, they pay a 3.75% contribution on their home for up to 3 years. Their total contribution over those three years is capped at 11.25% of the property's value.
After three years, the home drops out of the financial assessment completely. This cap applies even if the person in care continues to need nursing home support for many more years. This cap applies whether or not the Nursing Home Loan is in place. So even if you choose the loan option, the total amount payable is for those 3 years. Not the rest of your lives.
Where one member of the couple remains in the home while the other enters long-term nursing home care, the three-year cap applies to the principal residence, with the contribution capped at 11.25%.
If both members of a couple enter nursing home care, each retains at least 20% of their income or 20% of the maximum rate of the State Pension (Non-Contributory), whichever is greater. In that scenario, the total contribution across both partners' care is capped at 22.5% of the home's value over three years.
A Word of Advice for Couples Entering the Fair Deal Scheme in Ireland
The Nursing Home Loan Scheme (NHSS) in Ireland is nuanced. Many families encounter it without understanding the compounding effect of decisions made years earlier. Consulting an independent Fair Deal Scheme advisor in Ireland is the safest way to go about it. Consider evaluating the vital aspects of sending large sums of money as “gifts” to family members, property transfers to children, and rental arrangements. These decisions alter the assessment substantially with a 5-year look-back.
The five-year look-back rule in particular catches families off guard. Anyone entering this process should seek independent professional advice from a Fair Deal Scheme consultant in Ireland before submitting the application form, especially if farms, businesses, or multiple properties are involved.
