Over 80 million euro in social welfare payments were reclaimed by the state last year.
The Department of Social Protection also received nearly 7,800 reports of welfare fraud in 2022.
The department recovered social welfare payments from around 115,000 people last year. They totalled 80.5 million euro, with the largest amounts relating to the state pension and jobseekers' allowance.
7,792 reports of welfare fraud were received by the department last year, with over 80 per cent referred for investigation. Criminal prosecutions are taken against people who defraud the system. 123 criminal cases of welfare fraud were referred to the Chief State Solicitors Office last year. And during the year, 66 cases were finalised in court - and four people were jailed for the crime.
