THE NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS which have now registered either to pay the €100 Household Charge, or to claim a waiver from it, has passed 900,000.
Figures provided by the Local Government Management Agency show that as of noon today, 900,392 homes had paid the charge, registered for waivers, or had sent application forms to the LGMA or local councils which were waiting to be processed.
657,737 homes have completed registrations either through the LGMA’s website or local authorities, with another 183,500 postal forms awaiting processing at the LGMA’s Dublin headquarters.
Another 44,500 forms are on hand at local authority offices around the country waiting to be processed.
As of 9am this morning, 14,655 households had registered for waivers for the charge. Households in uncompleted ‘ghost’ housing estates are among those entitled to a waiver from the charge.
The total number of households accounted for at this point now stands at 900,392, 7,872 more than had been accounted in the previous figures from 9am yesterday morning.
Notably, however, the number of postal applications on hand at the LGMA offices has ballooned: 183,500 forms are now awaiting processing, compared to 153,000 in the figures from 27 hours earlier.
The Irish Daily Mail reported this morning that the LGMA had taken on extra staff to help work through the backlog of applications. The LGMA had not responded to a request for confirmation by the time of publication.
Households paying the charge after the March 31 deadline face charges of 1 per cent interest each month, as well as flat fees of €10 for paying it within three months of the deadline.
Households paying now are therefore liable for a charge of €111 rather than €100.
The legislation behind the charge also provides for fines of up to €2,500 for people who do not pay the charge on time.
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