Scheme: Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG), administered under the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 2003.
Maximum grant in Northern Ireland: £25,000. Check with NIHE for the current ceiling before you apply, it has been reviewed periodically.
Who runs it: Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE). This is different from England, Scotland and Wales where local councils administer the grant.
Means-tested? Yes for adult owner-occupiers and private tenants. Works for children under 19 are not means-tested.
Typical timeline: 6 to 12 months from first enquiry to fitted stairlift. OT lead times in some Trust areas are longer.
Is a DFG the right route for a stairlift?
In Northern Ireland the DFG is the main public-funding route for a stairlift if you own your home or rent privately. NIHE runs the grant for the whole region. You do not apply to your local council.
If you are an NIHE tenant or a housing-association tenant, you do not apply for a DFG. Your landlord arranges the adaptation through its own budgets at no cost to you. Contact your housing officer to start the process.
Who qualifies
The three gates are:
- The person needs the adaptation. An occupational therapist from your Health and Social Care Trust assesses whether a stairlift is necessary. The assessment is free.
- The works are reasonable and practicable. An NIHE grants officer checks whether the stairlift can actually be fitted given the staircase and the property.
- The household passes the means test (adults only). The test looks at income, savings and certain outgoings of the disabled person and their partner.
Automatic pass on the means test
The disabled person or their partner is usually treated as passing the means test if they receive any of:
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Guarantee Pension Credit
- Universal Credit (where the award includes no earned income above the relevant threshold)
Children under 19 are not means-tested for DFG works in Northern Ireland.
Savings and capital
Capital above roughly £6,000 counts against you and tariff income is added to the calculation. Capital over £16,000 usually removes entitlement unless an auto-pass benefit applies. These figures broadly track the UK-wide approach but NIHE sets the precise rules for Northern Ireland, so always confirm the current capital thresholds.
How to apply, step by step
- Contact your local Health and Social Care Trust to request an occupational therapy assessment. You can self-refer. The OT confirms whether a stairlift is the right adaptation.
- The OT sends a recommendation to NIHE. NIHE opens the DFG case file.
- NIHE sends the means-test paperwork. You return pay, pension, benefit and savings evidence for the disabled person and their partner.
- NIHE commissions a technical survey. This confirms the work is feasible and specifies the installation.
- Quotes from approved installers. NIHE uses a framework of installers for Northern Ireland. You can ask for another installer but it usually lengthens the process.
- NIHE issues the grant approval. Do not start work before this.
- Installation and sign-off. NIHE inspects the installation and pays the installer directly.
If the DFG does not cover the cost or takes too long
- Charities and benevolent funds. The Royal British Legion, SSAFA, Turn2us and many trade benevolent funds fund stairlifts for people who fit their criteria. Charity funding guide.
- Cash-flow help. Some suppliers in Northern Ireland will take a part-payment on instalment while a DFG is pending, but this is not universal. Ask.
- Reconditioned straight stairlifts. Availability is narrower in Northern Ireland than in Great Britain, but suppliers with a mainland base will ship across. Reconditioned guide.
- Rental. Available from most national installers for NI addresses. Stairlift rental.
Rough check: could you qualify?
The indicator below runs in your browser. It is a guide only. NIHE, not this site, makes the decision.
Stairlift grant indicator
A quick private check. Nothing leaves your browser. Your council or NIHE, not this site, makes the real decision.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Don’t apply to your council. In Northern Ireland the DFG is administered centrally by NIHE.
- Don’t pay the installer before NIHE’s approval letter arrives. Retrospective payment is very unusual.
- Don’t assume English or Scottish figures apply. Northern Ireland has its own ceiling and its own means-test detail.
- Don’t forget social tenants go through their landlord. If you rent from NIHE or a housing association you are not in the DFG process.
Where to go for free help
- Northern Ireland Housing Executive DFG team. Direct line and regional offices across the province.
- Age NI – free benefits checks and advice.
- Advice NI / Citizens Advice NI – free help with means-test paperwork.
- Your local Health and Social Care Trust OT service. Start the OT assessment here.
Sources
- NIHE: Disability adaptations – canonical guidance.
- Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 – the primary legislation.
- Age NI – free benefits and adaptations advice.