Medial card qualification question

hawthorne

A friend of mine approached me with a question about an entitlement to the medical card.
His brother in England offered him to pay for a used car here in Ireland. Price is 15.000 euros and the payment would go from the brother's bank account to the friend's account. Then my friend would pay the Irish dealer.
Revenue would regard it as a gift. Because it is under the threshold, no tax there.
No problems either with social welfare- my friend is on a non- means tested benefit payment.
He asked the folks from the HSE about the problem. Unfortunately he got no straight answer when he asked if a payment like that would affect his entitlement to the card. They simply told him that he has to reapply for the card if there was a change in his circumstances. They ignored all other details he posted them.
My friend's sole income is an illness benefit payment plus the attached payment for his wife. They do not have any other income. No savings on the bank, no large amount of cash, no shares,no nothing. They own their own house outright, no land with it. No mortgage either, no life insurance payments, no child care costs or travelling costs. So nothing to raise the treshold for getting the card.They are already above the qualifying threshold with this little income. They only do qualify because their sole income is the social welfare payment.
There will be a revue of the card coming up in 9 months time. My friend is worried that he would loose his card if he accepts the brother's gift.
Has my friend any reason to believe his card is at risk?
His main worry is the money from the brother on his bank account. He has to present his bank details at the next revue.
Would it make a difference if the brother pays the car dealer directly himself?
In that case my friend would not receive a cash income which would have to be declared (?) to the medical card people.

Squatter

hawthorne wrote: »

A friend of mine approached me with a question about an entitlement to the medical card. His brother in England offered him to pay for a used car here in Ireland.

Price is 15.000 euros and the payment would go from the brother's bank account to the friend's account.

Then my friend would pay the Irish dealer.

Would it make a difference if the brother pays the car dealer directly himself?

In that case my friend would not receive a cash income which would have to be declared (?) to the medical card people.

The HSE would obviously be curious about an amount of €15K entering and then leaving the bank account and would require a convincing explanation of its source - supported by documentation. It might be hard to convince them that the lodgement was a gift, rather than income from an unknown source.

So, to prevent delay and hassle, it would probably be better if your friend's brother paid for the car himself - either with a Euro bank draft payable to the dealer or by transferring the funds directly into the dealer's bank account.

Alternatively perhaps your friend could get a UK bank draft from his brother, cash it and then pay for the car in cash.

There's no problem with a medical card holder owning a car. It won't affect the means test as car ownership doesn't even appear on the application form.

hawthorne

Squatter wrote: »

The HSE would obviously be curious about an amount of €15K entering and then leaving the bank account and would require a convincing explanation of its source - supported by documentation. It might be hard to convince them that the lodgement was a gift, rather than income from an unknown source.

So, to prevent delay and hassle, it would probably be better if your friend's brother paid for the car himself - either with a Euro bank draft payable to the dealer or by transferring the funds directly into the dealer's bank account.

Alternatively perhaps your friend could get a UK bank draft from his brother, cash it and then pay for the car in cash.

There's no problem with a medical card holder owning a car. It won't affect the means test as car ownership doesn't even appear on the application form.

Your answer somehow suggests that my friend would loose his card if it would be known to the medical card people that he got a gift of 15k in form of a car.
I looked through the HSE's own guidelines but could not find anything about gifts.
Others like Irish revenue are quite clear about this situation.
So I wonder how the situation is with the HSE.
They have limits for savings on the bank in their guidelines.Somehow I would classify the 15K-in form of a car- as an additional income and would tend to advice the friend not to accept it.

Squatter

hawthorne wrote: »

Your answer somehow suggests that my friend would loose his card if it would be known to the medical card people that he got a gift of 15k in form of a car.
I looked through the HSE's own guidelines but could not find anything about gifts.
Others like Irish revenue are quite clear about this situation.
So I wonder how the situation is with the HSE.
They have limits for savings on the bank in their guidelines.Somehow I would classify the 15K-in form of a car- as an additional income and would tend to advice the friend not to accept it.

My answer "somehow suggests" nothing of the sort but merely identifies the potential implications of the proposed gift from the HSE's perspective.

hawthorne

Squatter wrote: »

My answer "somehow suggests" nothing of the sort but merely identifies the potential implications of the proposed gift from the HSE's perspective.

You are talking about "potential implications" here.
The HSE was asked directly about the case. Full name given, number of medical card, income situation and so on. Proof of the whole thing- like bank statements- was offered if the HSE would allow the presentation of the gift.
The HSE was asked several times about the case. Each time they did not give an answer and came up with generalizations like their assessment guidelines,etc. which gave no hint how the thing would work out in the end.
What makes me curious now is the fact that the the HSE was unable- or unwilling- to give a straight answer to a straight question.
Does a TD has to ask the question in the Dail to get an answer?
Or is it a pretty common thing not to mention such happenings and just go on with life regardless?