Home energy and repairs

Individual Domestic Well Grant (grant for a private water supply)

A council grant for homes that get their drinking water from their own well. It pays up to €3,000 to fix a well or up to €5,000 for a new one, plus up to €1,000 for water treatment.

Checked against the official pages on 19 September 2026.

What it is

For homes that rely on their own well, not Uisce Éireann or a group water scheme. It helps pay to fix a well, drill a new one, or treat the water when it is not safe to drink or runs short.

The Department of Housing funds it. Your local council's rural water section runs it.

What it is worth

Treatment can be added to either well grant, but not both well grants, so the most is €6,000. Work costing under €750 in total gets nothing.

Who can get it

The council must agree that all of these apply:

• The water has been tested and does not meet drinking water standards, or the well does not give enough water for the household. A supply from a rainwater tank can count.
• You live in the house as your normal home. Long term rentals count. Holiday homes, short term lets, self catering, caravans and mobile homes do not.
• The house is not connected to Uisce Éireann or a group water scheme, cannot reasonably be connected, and is not in an area that is or soon will be served by one.
• The house was fully built more than 7 years ago.
• No well grant, including a treatment grant, has been paid for the house in the last 7 years.
• The well serves your house only. Houses sharing a source do not count as a private supply for this grant.

The Department's terms set no income or means test. Homes owned by a council, a housing association or the HSE cannot get this grant.

A second grant within 7 years is possible only after an emergency such as contamination, subsidence or damage from weather, and only if the first grant was not used in full. The two grants together cannot go over the normal maximum.

What the grant covers and what it does not

Covered: drilling a new well; fixing an existing one, such as deepening, relining or clearing silt; a supply from a surface water source; a pump house, piping, pumps and electrics for the supply; treatment equipment; and the water tests before and after the work.

Not covered: plumbing inside the house; water used for a farm or business (the council may pay only the household share); more treatment than the water needs; water softeners, because hard water does not count as a quality problem; and any work started before the council has inspected and approved it in writing.

The council sets the approved cost. This is its estimate of a fair price for the work, not simply what the contractor charges.

The water tests

The council gives you the list of things the water must be tested for. The laboratory must take the sample itself, because it uses sterile bottles and set methods. A sample you take yourself will not be accepted.

The laboratory must be independent and accredited by INAB, the Irish National Accreditation Board, or an equivalent body. Results from a laboratory that is not accredited are not accepted.

If you are putting in treatment, the water is tested before, to show what equipment is needed, and again after. The Department advises using the treatment for at least two weeks before the second test.

If a well is drilled or fixed, the driller must also give you a signed Certificate of Water Quantity, based on a pumping test. The council should give you this form with your approval letter.

In some areas the council or the HSE may be able to provide the testing. Ask your council.

What you’ll need

• Form PWS 1a, the application form, with every question answered and your Eircode. Your council has it, and the Department's version is in the terms and conditions PDF linked below
• Water test results from an accredited laboratory, for the things your council tells you to test for. Some councils have their own form for this, for example Cork asks for a Laboratory Verification Form with the Certificate of Water Analysis
• Three quotes for all the proposed work, including any treatment
• A copy of a current tax clearance certificate for each contractor. Galway also accepts a C2
• Details of any water supply grant paid for the house in the last 7 years: who paid it, how much and when
• After the work, to be paid: form PWS 1b with your PPS number, itemised receipts from each contractor, the laboratory's Certificate of Analysis of the treated water, and for drilling or repair work the driller's signed Certificate of Water Quantity. If you used a contractor who was not on your application form, add a copy of their tax clearance certificate

How to apply

1. Contact the rural water section of your local council. Ask for its application form, terms and conditions, and the list of things to test the water for
2. Have the water tested by an accredited laboratory, and get three quotes for all the work, with a tax clearance certificate for each contractor
3. Send form PWS 1a with the quotes, certificates and test results to your council before any work starts. Some councils, such as Cork, also take applications online
4. The council inspects your well to confirm the problem, checks the proposed work is the right fix, and gives you advice
5. The council tells you in writing or by email whether you are approved. Only start work after you have that written approval
6. Do the approved work. If treatment is fitted, the Department advises using it for at least two weeks before the treated water is tested again
7. Send form PWS 1b with the receipts and certificates. The council inspects the finished work and then pays the grant

Key dates and how long it takes

• There is no closing date. You can apply at any time of year.
• The Department's terms only say applications and payment claims will be processed as quickly as possible. No council we checked publishes a decision time or a waiting list, so ask yours when you apply.
• There is no backdating. Work started before approval is refused.
• If the work cost less than the approved cost, the council lowers the approved cost. If the work was not done properly, it can lower the amount or hold back payment until it is fixed.

Who to contact

If you are turned down

• Every council must let you appeal to an official who did not deal with your first application.
• Appeal in writing, and email is fine. Say why you disagree with the decision.
• The appeal must reach the council within 3 weeks of the date of the decision.
• The council decides within 4 weeks of getting your appeal, and tells you in writing within 2 weeks of deciding.

Things people miss

• The €750 minimum is the total cost of the work, not the grant. Small jobs under €750 get nothing.
• The grant is a share of the approved cost set by the council, not of your contractor's price. If a quote is high, the grant may not rise with it.
• A new well is only paid for where the council agrees it is the best fix. Kildare says a new well grant is only for homes that already have a well.
• Water softeners are never covered. Hard water is not treated as a quality problem.
• If the well also serves a farm or a business, the council may only pay for the household share.
• Keep copies of every certificate and receipt. The council will not pay without the Certificate of Analysis, and for well work the Certificate of Water Quantity.
• The EPA recommends testing your well water at least once a year, grant or no grant.

Common questions