S.I. No. 95/1996:

SOCIAL WELFARE (CONSOLIDATED PAYMENTS PROVISIONS) (AMENDMENT) REGULATIONS, 1996

SOCIAL WELFARE (CONSOLIDATED PAYMENTS PROVISIONS) (AMENDMENT) REGULATIONS, 1996

The Minister for Social Welfare, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 2 (as amended by section 15 of the Social Welfare Act, 1995 (No. 3 of 1995), 3 (as amended by section 10 of the Social Welfare (No. 2) Act, 1995 (No. 23 of 1995) and 4 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1993 (No. 27 of 1993) hereby makes the following Regulations:-

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Consolidated Payments Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations, 1996.

(2) These Regulations and the Social Welfare (Consolidated Payments Provisions) Regulations, 1994 and 1995 shall be construed together as one and may be cited as the Social Welfare (Consolidated Payments Provisions) Regulations, 1994 to 1996.

2. These Regulations shall apply to any claim for--

(a) an increase of benefit or assistance in respect of an adult dependant,

(b) an increase of old age (non-contributory) pension in respect of a spouse, or

(c) family income supplement,

made on or after the 5th day of April, 1996.

3. The Social Welfare (Consolidated Payments Provisions) Regulations, 1994 and 1995 are hereby amended by the substitution for article 6 of the following articles:

"6. A spouse who is wholly or mainly maintained by a person is hereby specified, subject to sections 170 and 245A, to be an adult dependant in relation to that person, for the purposes of the Principal Act where the spouse is

(a) in employment or self-employment, or

(b) entitled to or in receipt of disablement benefit under section 54, death benefit under section 62, orphan's (contributory) allowance, orphan's (non-contributory) pension and to no other benefit or assistance (other than supplementary welfare allowance).

6A. (1) A person, being one of a couple, shall be regarded to be wholly or mainly maintaining his or her spouse where that spouse's weekly income, calculated or estimated in accordance with article 6B, does not exceed £60.

(2) A person, being one of a married couple who are not living together, shall be regarded to be wholly or mainly maintaining his or her spouse where that spouse is not cohabiting with another person as husband and wife and that spouse's weekly income, calculated or estimated in accordance with article 6B, does not exceed £60 and the first-mentioned person is contributing towards the maintenance of his or her spouse by a weekly amount which is equal to or in excess of the amount set down in column (3) of Part I of the Fourth Schedule.

(3) A person, being-

(i) a single person,

(ii) a widow,

(iii) a widower, or

(iv) a married person who is not living with and is neither wholly or mainly maintaining, nor being wholly or mainly maintained by, such married person's spouse,

shall be regarded to be wholly or mainly maintaining another person where that other person, being over the age of 16 years and having the care of one or more than one qualified child of the first-mentioned person, resides with the first-mentioned person and his or her weekly income, calculated or estimated in accordance with article 6B, does not exceed £60.

(4) In sub-article (1)

'couple' means a married couple who are living together or a man and woman who are not married to each other but are cohabiting as husband and wife;

'spouse' means each person of a couple in relation to the other.

6B. (1) For the purposes of article 6A, weekly income shall, subject to this article, be calculated or estimated

(a) insofar as it comprises earnings from employment as an employee, by reference to the weekly average of the gross amount of all such earnings received in the previous 2 months where such earnings are received at monthly intervals or in the previous 6 weeks where such earnings are received at weekly or fortnightly intervals,

(b) insofar as it comprises income from any form of self-employment, by reference to the weekly amount of such income calculated or estimated by dividing the income in the last complete income tax year by 52,

(c) insofar as it consists of income from property (other than property referred to in paragraph (d) of this sub-article) which is invested or otherwise put to profitable use or is capable of being, but is not invested or put to profitable use, by reference to one fifty second part of the yearly value of the property, calculated as follows:

(i) the first £2,000 of the capital value of the property shall be excluded,

(ii) the yearly value of the next £20,000 of the capital value of the property shall be assessed at 7.5 per cent., and

(iii) the yearly value of so much of the capital value of the property as exceeds £22,000 shall be assessed at 15 per cent. , and

(d) insofar as it consists of income from any other source (including rent or any other periodical payment receivable for the possession and use of property in all lands, tenements and hereditaments), by reference to the normal weekly amount of such income.

(2) In calculating or estimating the weekly income under sub-article (1), any sums received by way of disablement benefit under section 54, death benefit under section 62, child benefit, orphan's (contributory) allowance, orphan's (non-contributory) pension under the Principal Act or sums received by way of assistance in the maintenance at home of handicapped children under section 61 of the Health Act, 1970 (No.1 of 1970) and known as domiciliary care allowance, shall be disregarded.

(3) A deciding officer or appeals officer who, in any case, considers that the periods mentioned in sub-article (1) would not be appropriate to determine the amount of weekly income, may for the purposes of this article have regard to such other period which appears to the officer to be appropriate for that purpose.".

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Social Welfare,

this 29th day of March, 1996.

PROINSIAS DE ROSSA

Minister for Social Welfare.

The Minister for Finance hereby consents to the making of the foregoing Regulations.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Finance,

this 29th day of March, 1996.

RUAIRÍ QUINN

Minister for Finance.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations provide that a person will be regarded to be wholly or mainly maintaining another person for the purposes of the Social Welfare Acts where the person

(a) is one of a married couple living together or one of a cohabiting couple and the person's spouse or partner does not have weekly income in excess of £60;

(b) being separated from his or her spouse, is contributing towards his or her spouse's maintenance by a weekly amount of at least £37.50 where the spouse is not cohabiting with someone else as husband and wife and the spouse does not have weekly income in excess of £60; or

(c) being an unmarried, widowed or separated person, is residing with a person aged 16 or over who does not have weekly income in excess of £60 and who is caring for a child dependant of the person. In the case of a separated person, he or she must not be living with or be wholly or mainly maintained by his or her spouse.

The Regulations also contain a consequential amendment to existing provisions which specify that a person will be regarded as a adult dependant where he or she is employed or self-employed with weekly earnings which do not exceed £60.

The Regulations also specify the manner in which a person's weekly income is to be calculated for the purposes of determining whether he or she is being wholly or mainly maintained by another person.