The Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996

Calculation of earnings of self-employed earners

95.—(1) Except where paragraph (2) applies, where a claimant’s income consists of earnings from employment as a self-employed earner the weekly amount of his earnings shall be determined by reference to his average weekly earnings from that employment—

(a)over a period of one year; or

(b)where the claimant has recently become engaged in that employment or there has been a change which is likely to affect the normal pattern of business, over such other period as may, in any particular case, enable the weekly amount of his earnings to be determined more accurately.

(2) Where the claimant’s earnings consist of royalties or sums paid periodically for or in respect of any copyright those earnings shall be taken into account over a period equal to such number of weeks as is equal to the number obtained (and any fraction shall be treated as a corresponding fraction of a week) by dividing the earnings by the amount of jobseeker’s allowance which would be payable had the payment not been made plus an amount equal to the total of the sums which would fall to be disregarded from the payment under Schedule 6 [F1and Schedule 6A] (earnings to be disregarded) as is appropriate in the claimant’s case.

(3) For the purposes of this regulation the claimant’s earnings shall be calculated in accordance with Chapter IV of this Part.