Switching bank, closing an account you barely use, moving the money somewhere with lower fees. Whatever the reason, the Child Benefit has to follow you, and the part that goes wrong is almost never the paperwork. It is the order.
The short version
- Online
- MyWelfare, using "Change my Payment Method". Child Benefit is on the list
- What you need online
- A verified MyGovID, and the account name, IBAN and BIC
- By post
- Form DIR PMT1, Direct Payment to an Account in a Financial Institution
- The catch
- The posted form must be the original. A scan or photocopy is not accepted
- When you are paid
- The first Tuesday of every month
- Who decides
- The Department of Social Protection
Do this before you close the old account
This is the whole guide in one line. Change the details, then wait until you have seen a payment actually arrive in the new account, and only then close the old one.
Child Benefit is paid on the first Tuesday of every month. That rhythm is what makes closing the old account early expensive: a payment sent to a closed account has to be traced and reissued, and the next scheduled payment is a month away rather than a few days. Nothing about the change is difficult. The timing is where it bites.
Online, if you have a verified MyGovID
The Department's own online route is "Change my Payment Method" on MyWelfare, and Child Benefit is named on the list of schemes it covers, along with One-Parent Family Payment, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the carer's payments.
Have three things ready before you start:
- A verified MyGovID. Not a basic account. This is the single most common reason people bounce off the online route, and if you only have a basic account, the postal form below may genuinely be faster than getting verified first.
- The account name, IBAN and BIC of the account you want to move to.
- Which scheme you are changing. The service asks per payment, so changing Child Benefit does not move anything else you receive.
If a payment you receive is not on that list, the Department says the option may still be available through Manage my claim in your account.
By post, and the rule that catches people out
The form is DIR PMT1, "Direct Payment to an Account in a Financial Institution". You can download and print it, order one by post, or call into an Intreo Centre or Branch Office.
You must return the original form. The Department states plainly that scans and photocopies cannot be accepted. If you print it, sign it and then email a photo of it, nothing happens, and you will most likely find that out when the payment lands in the old account again. Post the paper.
Two smaller things from the same page, both worth a second look before it goes in the envelope. Fill in both the IBAN and the BIC, because the Department names missing details as the cause of delays. And use the return address printed on the form itself rather than a general Departmental address you already have.
It does not have to be a bank
Worth knowing if the reason you are moving is account fees: a social welfare payment can be paid to a current or deposit account at any bank or post office of your choice. The choice of provider is yours, and this service takes no view on which one.
What this does not change
Changing the account changes where the money goes, not who it belongs to. Child Benefit is paid to the child's mother or stepmother, or to the father or stepfather where the child does not live with their mother or stepmother, and moving it into a different account does not alter that. Changing the person who receives the payment is a different request to the Child Benefit Section, not a payment-details update.
It is also separate from the changes reported on form CB56, which covers changes of circumstance affecting the claim itself rather than the account it is paid into.
Who decides
The Department of Social Protection administers Child Benefit and processes the change. If something has gone wrong with a payment, the Child Benefit Section is the place to ring, and your local Intreo Centre, Branch Office or Citizens Information Centre can help with the form in person.
Keep the rest of it in order too
parentready puts your Irish parent admin in sequence, with the deadlines attached, so the things that only matter once are waiting for you at the right moment. Free, private, and on your device.
Official sources
- Department of Social Protection: How to get a social welfare payment into your bank (the online route, form DIR PMT1, the original-only rule and the IBAN and BIC warning)
- MyWelfare: Change my Payment Method (the list of schemes, the verified MyGovID requirement and what to have ready)
- Citizens Information: Child Benefit (the first Tuesday payment date and who the payment is made to)
Facts checked against the official pages on 12 August 2026. This is general information, not financial advice, and it does not recommend any bank or account. The Department of Social Protection administers the payment and processes any change to it. Rules can change; always confirm on the official pages linked above.