The State Pension Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003

Regulation 17(7)

SCHEDULE 4 AMOUNTS TO BE DISREGARDED IN THE CALCULATION OF INCOME OTHER THAN EARNINGS

1.  In addition to any sum which falls to be disregarded in accordance with paragraphs 3 to 6, £10 of any of the following, namely –

(a) a war disablement pension (except insofar as such a pension falls to be disregarded under paragraph 2 or 3);

(b) a war widow’s or war widower’s pension;

(c) a pension payable to a person as a widow under the Naval, Military and Air Forces etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 1983(1) insofar as that Order is made under the Naval and Marine Pay and Pensions Act 1865(2) or the Pensions and Yeomanry Pay Act 1884(3), or is made only under section 12(1) of the Social Security (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1977(4) and any power of Her Majesty otherwise than under any statutory provision, to make provision about pensions for or in respect of persons who have been disabled or have died in consequence of service as members of the armed forces of the Crown;

(d) a payment made to compensate for the non-payment of such a pension as is mentioned in any of sub-paragraphs (a) to (c);

(e) a pension paid by the government of a country outside Great Britain which is analogous to any of the pensions mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a) to (c);

(f) a pension paid to victims of National Socialist persecution under any special provision made by the law of the Federal Republic of Germany, or any part of it, or of the Republic of Austria.

2.  The whole of any amount included in a pension to which paragraph 1 relates in respect of –

(a) the claimant’s need for constant attendance;

(b) the claimant’s exceptionally severe disablement.

3.  Any mobility supplement under Article 26A of the Naval, Military and Air Forces etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 1983(5) (including such a supplement by virtue of any other scheme or order) or under Article 25A of the Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme 1983(6) or any payment intended to compensate for the non-payment of such a supplement.

4.  Any supplementary pension under Article 29(1A) of the Naval, Military and Air Forces etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 1983(7) (pensions to widows).

5.  In the case of a pension awarded at the supplementary rate under Article 27(3) of the Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme 1983(8) (pensions to widows), the sum specified in paragraph 1(c) of Schedule 4 to that Scheme.

6.—(1) Any payment which is –

(a) made under any of the Dispensing Instruments to a widow of a person –

(i) whose death was attributable to service in a capacity analogous to service as a member of the armed forces of the Crown, and

(ii) whose service in such capacity terminated before 31st March 1973, and

(b) equal to the amount specified in Article 29(1A) of the Naval, Military and Air Forces etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 1983 (pensions to widows).

(2) In this paragraph “the Dispensing Instruments” means the Order in Council of 19th December 1881, the Royal Warrant of 27th October 1884 and the Order by His Majesty of 14th January 1922(9) (exceptional grants of pay, non-effective pay and allowances).

7.  £10 of any widowed parent’s allowance to which the claimant is entitled under section 39A of the Contributions and Benefits Act(10).

8.—(1) Where the claimant occupies a dwelling as his home and he provides in that dwelling board and lodging accommodation, an amount, in respect of each person for whom such accommodation is provided for the whole or any part of a week, equal to –

(a) where the aggregate of any payments made in respect of any one week in respect of such accommodation provided to such person does not exceed £20, 100 per cent. of such payments, or

(b) where the aggregate of any such payments exceeds £20, £20 and 50 per cent. of the excess over £20.

(2) In this paragraph “board and lodging accommodation” means accommodation provided to a person or, if he is a member of a family, to him or any other member of his family, for a charge which is inclusive of the provision of that accommodation and at least some cooked or prepared meals which both are cooked or prepared (by a person other than the person to whom the accommodation is provided or a member of his family) and are consumed in that accommodation or associated premises.

9.  If the claimant –

(a) owns the freehold or leasehold interest in any property or is a tenant of any property;

(b) occupies a part of that property, and

(c) has an agreement with another person allowing that person to occupy another part of that property on payment of rent and –

(i) the amount paid by that person is less than £20 per week, the whole of that amount, or

(ii) the amount paid is £20 or more per week, £20.

10.  Where a claimant receives income under an annuity purchased with a loan, which satisfies the following conditions –

(a) that the loan was made as part of a scheme under which not less than 90 per cent. of the proceeds of the loan were applied to the purchase by the person to whom it was made of an annuity ending with his life or with the life of the survivor of 2 or more persons (in this paragraph referred to as “the annuitants”) who include the person to whom the loan was made;

(b) that at the time the loan was made the person to whom it was made or each of the annuitants had attained the age of 65;

(c) that the loan was secured on a dwelling in Northern Ireland and the person to whom the loan was made or one of the annuitants owns an estate or interest in that dwelling;

(d) that the person to whom the loan was made or one of the annuitants occupies the dwelling on which it was secured as his home at the time the interest is paid, and

(e) that the interest payable on the loan is paid by the person to whom the loan was made or by one of the annuitants,

the amount, calculated on a weekly basis, equal to –

(i) where, or insofar as, section 369 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988(11) (mortgage interest payable under deduction of tax) applies to the payments of interest on the loan, the interest which is payable after deduction of a sum equal to income tax on such payments at the applicable percentage of income tax within the meaning of section 369(1A) of that Act(12);

(ii) in any other case the interest which is payable on the loan without deduction of such a sum.

11.—(1) Any payment, other than a payment to which sub-paragraph (2) applies, made to the claimant by Trustees in exercise of a discretion exercisable by them.

(2) This sub-paragraph applies to payments made to the claimant by Trustees in exercise of a discretion exercisable by them for the purpose of –

(a) obtaining food, ordinary clothing or footwear or household fuel;

(b) the payment of rent or rates for which that claimant or his partner is liable;

(c) meeting housing costs of a kind specified in Schedule 2.

(3) In a case to which sub-paragraph (2) applies, £20 or –

(a) if the payment is less than £20, the whole payment, or

(b) if, in the claimant’s case, £10 is disregarded in accordance with paragraph 1(a) to (f) or paragraph 7, £10 or the whole payment if it is less than £10.

(4) For the purposes of this paragraph –

“ordinary clothing and footwear” means clothing or footwear for normal daily use, but does not include school uniforms, or clothing and footwear used solely for sporting activities;

“rent or rates” means eligible rent or rates for the purposes of the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 less any deductions in respect of non-dependants which fall to be made under regulation 63 (non-dependant deductions) of those Regulations(13).

12.  Any increase in pension under Part IV of the Naval, Military and Air Forces etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 1983 paid in respect of a dependent other than the pensioner’s spouse.

13.  Any payment ordered by a court to be made to the claimant or the claimant’s partner in consequence of any accident, injury or disease suffered by the person to whom the payments are made.

14.  Periodic payments made to the claimant or the claimant’s partner under an agreement entered into in settlement of a claim made by that person for an injury suffered by him.

15.  Any income which is payable outside the United Kingdom for such period during which there is a prohibition against the transfer to the United Kingdom of that income.

16.  Any banking charges or commission payable in converting to sterling payments of income made in a currency other than sterling.

(1)

S.I. 1983/883; relevant amending instruments are S.I. 1993/598 and S.I. 1994/1906

(2)

1865 c. 73

(3)

47 and 48 Vict. c. 55

(4)

1977 c. 5

(5)

Article 26A was inserted by S.I. 1983/1116 and amended by S.I. 1983/1821, 1986/592, 1990/1308, 1991/766, 1992/710, 1995/766 and 1997/286

(6)

S.I. 1983/686; Article 25A was inserted by Article 3 of S.I. 1983/1164

(7)

Article 29(1A) was inserted by S.I. 1994/1906

(8)

Relevant amending instruments are S.I. 1994/2021 and S.I. 1995/445

(9)

Copies of “the Dispensing Instruments” are available from the Department for Social Development, Social Security Policy and Legislation Division, Stormont Estate, Belfast BT4 3SJ

(10)

Section 39A was inserted by Article 52(2) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11))

(11)

1988 c. 1

(12)

Subsection (1A) was inserted by section 81(3) of the Finance Act 1994 (c. 9)

(13)

Regulation 63 was amended by regulation 7(a) of S.R. 1989 No. 125, regulation 8 of S.R. 1990 No. 136, regulation 8 of S.R. 1990 No. 345, regulation 2 of S.R. 1992 No. 85, regulation 7(a) of S.R. 1992 No. 549, regulation 9 of S.R. 1993 No. 145, regulation 4(3)(d) of S.R. 1993 No. 195, regulation 4(d) of S.R. 1993 No. 233, regulation 9 of S.R. 1994 No. 404, regulation 10 of S.R. 1996 No. 334, regulation 2 of S.R. 1997 No. 3, regulation 5(2)(a)(ii) of S.R. 1998 No. 81 and Article 19(4) of S.R. 2000 No. 38