Over 1,000 asylum seekers will get their Christmas “bonus” this week – of €16.23 for adults and €13.26 for their children.

These asylum seekers are among 1.2 million welfare recipients who will get the “bonus”, worth 85 per cent of their weekly allowance, along with their regular payment, between now and Friday.

According to figures from the Department of Social Protection, some 1,170 recipients of the direct provision allowance – of €19.10 per week for adults and €15.60 for children, will be entitled to the “bonus”.