Housing Adaptation Grant Galway 2026: stairlift and bathroom grants up to €40,000 from Galway City or Galway County Council

Last updated: 12 October 2026 · For Galway City Council, Galway County Council

There are 2 Galway local authorities. Galway residents can claim up to €40,000 through the State's Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability, or up to €8,000 through the Mobility Aids Grant Scheme, same national rules, applied locally. Galway City Council or Galway County Council. Use the Eircode finder at finder.eircode.ie to confirm which covers your address.

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How to apply in Galway, step by step

1. Identify your council using the Eircode lookup or contact details below.
2. Check whether you need an OT report. You need one for a stairlift or through-floor lift, a fixed hoist, an extension or a big change to how a room is used (for the Mobility Aids Grant, only a stairlift or fixed hoist). Ask your GP or public health nurse for an HSE occupational therapist referral early, or use a private OT. If you pay a private OT and the grant is paid, the council pays back up to €300 of the fee as part of the grant, not on top of it (for the Mobility Aids Grant, only where the council decides the assessment was needed). Most councils can arrange an assessment after they get your application, but not all. Galway City Council wants the OT report sent with the application, and its 2026 checklist asks for one for a bathroom adaptation too. Galway County Council wants the OT report sent with a Mobility Aids application for a stairlift or hoist.
3. Check what the council wants on quotes. Since 1 January 2026, Galway City Council has based grant funding on its own standard costings, not on the quotations supplied. Galway County Council uses the national form, which asks for no set number: after approval, the council asks for information from the contractor doing the work, such as a quote and their tax reference number.
4. Download the application form from your council's website (links below).
5. Submit: the form (with the Doctor’s Certificate signed and stamped by your GP, for the Housing Adaptation or Mobility Aids Grant), proof of income for the previous tax year for the owner and their spouse or partner (a Revenue Statement of Liability, not a P60, plus a Department of Social Protection payment statement for payments that are not on it, such as Disability Allowance or Fuel Allowance), proof that Local Property Tax is paid, deferred or exempt for all years, with the owner’s name and the address (Galway City Council asks for Proof of Registration for LPT, or a printout of My LPT Profile), and an OT report if the work needs one. If the grant comes to €10,000 or more you will also need tax clearance from Revenue, which the council asks for after approval. Galway City also asks for a quote for each type of work, photographs and, for a bathroom or ramp, a sketch of the current and proposed layout, and it does not accept post office slips or bank statements as proof of income.
6. Wait for written approval. The national target is a decision within six weeks of a complete application. Do not start works.
7. Have works carried out after approval. Submit completion documents to receive payment.

Steps, documents, quotes and OT reports: national application form, Galway City Council, national guidelines, December 2024, checked 12 October 2026.

Galway council application details

Galway City Council

• Send to: Galway City Council, City Hall, College Road, Galway H91 X4K8 (the address on its form; it names no section)
• Phone: 091 536400 (Customer Services; there is no grants line)
• Email, for questions: customerservice@galwaycity.ie
• Covers: Galway city, Salthill, Knocknacarra, Doughiska, Renmore, Mervue
• Grants page: galwaycity.ie

Galway County Council

• Send to: Housing Grants, Galway County Council, Áras an Chontae, Prospect Hill, Galway H91 H6KX
• Grants line: 091 509301
• Email, for questions: housinggrants@galwaycoco.ie
• Covers: Tuam, Loughrea, Ballinasloe, Athenry, Gort, Clifden, Oughterard, Headford, Portumna and the rest of County Galway including the Aran Islands
• Grants page: galway.ie

Addresses, phone numbers and emails checked on Galway City Council, Galway County Council pages and application forms on 12 October 2026. Confirm with the council before posting anything.

Galway County Council and Galway City Council grants for pensioners, stairlifts and bathrooms

When people look for Galway County Council grants for pensioners, or housing grants from Galway City Council, they usually mean three grants. Both Galway councils run all three, and each takes all three on one application form.

• Housing Aid for Older People: up to €10,700 for homeowners aged 66 or over, for essential repairs and improvements such as heating, windows or rewiring.
• Mobility Aids Grant: up to €8,000 for a stairlift, grab rails, a ramp or a level-access shower, for household incomes up to €37,500.
• Housing Adaptation Grant: up to €40,000 for bigger work such as a through-floor lift, a downstairs bathroom or an extension, for household incomes up to €75,000.

These are also what people mean by home improvement grants for pensioners, or grants for disabled adaptations, in Galway. There is no separate HSE stair lift grant in Galway. The council pays the grant, and the HSE’s part is usually the occupational therapist report.

How long it takes in Galway

The national guidelines ask councils to decide within six weeks of receiving a fully completed and valid application. That is a target, not a deadline, and the clock starts only when nothing is missing: a council sends back an application that is missing key documents, with a checklist. We found no processing time on either council’s pages (checked 12 October 2026).

If the work needs an occupational therapist report (a stairlift or through-floor lift, a fixed hoist, an extension or a big change to how a room is used), ask your GP or public health nurse for the referral early, and ask how long the wait is: we found no official waiting times for these assessments. If you pay a private OT and the grant is paid, the council pays back up to €300 of the fee as part of the grant, not on top of it (for the Mobility Aids Grant, only where the council decides the assessment was needed). Galway City Council wants the OT report sent with the application, and its 2026 checklist asks for one for a bathroom adaptation too. Galway County Council wants the OT report sent with a Mobility Aids application for a stairlift or hoist. Order nothing until the council approves in writing: work started before approval is not paid for.

Getting the application form

Galway City Council and Galway County Council each have their own form on their websites, under housing grants. Apply to the council for the area you live in, and your Eircode settles it. Our guide to the housing adaptation grant application form shows what each section asks for and what to have ready before you start.

What's specific to applying in Galway

• Two councils, Galway City and Galway County. Use Eircode lookup to confirm which covers your address.
• Connemara has many older traditional homes (cottages, farmhouses) where curved stairlifts are common because of irregular tread depths.
• Coastal areas (Salthill, Spiddal, Clifden, Roundstone, Carraroe) need weatherproof outdoor stairlifts because of salt air.
• Aran Islands residents apply through Galway County Council; installation lead times are longer because of ferry logistics.

Galway stairlift coverage by town

Stairlift and home adaptation installers work across all of Galway. Common service areas include: Galway city, Tuam, Loughrea, Ballinasloe, Athenry, Gort, Clifden, Oughterard, Headford, Portumna, Salthill, Spiddal, Roundstone.

FAQs, Galway specifically