The Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2009

Amendment of the Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006

5.—(1) The Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 1996(1) are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 17(4) (calculation of claimant’s income in savings credit only cases) after sub-paragraph (g) add—

“(h) any amount to be disregarded by virtue of paragraph 5A of Schedule 2.”.

(3) In Schedule 2(2) (sums disregarded from claimant’s earnings) after paragraph 5 add—

“5A.— (1) Where—

(a) the claimant (or if the claimant is a member of a couple, at least one member of that couple) is a person to whom sub-paragraph (5) applies;

(b) the Secretary of State is satisfied that that person is undertaking exempt work as defined in sub-paragraph (6); and

(c) regulation 16 does not apply,

the amount specified in sub-paragraph (7) (“the specified amount”).

(2) Where this paragraph applies, paragraphs 1 to 5 and 7 do not apply; but in any case where the claimant is a lone parent, and the specified amount would be less than the amount specified in paragraph 2, then paragraph 2 applies instead of this paragraph.

(3) Notwithstanding regulation 13 (calculation of income and capital of members claimant’s family and of a polygamous marriage), if sub-paragraph (1) applies to one member of a couple (“A”) it shall not apply to the other member of that couple (“B”) except to the extent provided in sub-paragraph (4).

(4) Where A’s earnings are less than the specified amount, there shall also be disregarded so much of B’s earnings as would not when aggregated with A’s earnings exceed the specified amount; but the amount of B’s earnings which may be disregarded under this sub-paragraph is limited to a maximum of £20 unless the Secretary of State is satisfied that B is also undertaking exempt work.

(5) This sub-paragraph applies to a person who is—

(a) in receipt of a contributory employment and support allowance;

(b) in receipt of incapacity benefit;

(c) in receipt of severe disablement allowance; or

(d) being credited with earnings on the grounds of incapacity for work or limited capability for work under regulation 8B of the Social Security (Credits) Regulations 1975(3).

(6) “Exempt work” means work of the kind described in—

(a) regulation 45(2), (3) or (4) of the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations; or (as the case may be)

(b) regulation 17(2), (3) or (4) of the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (General) Regulations 1995(4),

and, in determining for the purposes of this paragraph whether a claimant or a member of a couple is undertaking any type of exempt work, it is immaterial whether that person or their partner is also undertaking other work.

(7) The specified amount is the amount of money from time to time mentioned in any provision referred to in sub-paragraph (6) by virtue of which the work referred to in sub-paragraph (1) is exempt (or, where more than one such provision is relevant and those provisions mention different amounts of money, the highest of those amounts).”; and

(4) In Schedule 4 (capital disregards) paragraph 26B as inserted by the Social Security (Deferral of Retirement Pensions, Shared Additional Pension and Graduated Retirement Benefit) (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2005(5) is renumbered 26C.

(1)

S.I. 2006/216.

(2)

Relevant amending instruments are S.I. 2008/1082, 2008/3157 and 2009/583.

(3)

S.I. 1975/556. Regulation 8B was inserted by S.I. 1996/2367. Relevant amending instruments are S.I. 2000/3120, 2003/521, 2007/1749 and 2008/1554.

(4)

S.I. 1995/311. Relevant amending instruments are S.I. 2006/757, 2008/2365 and 2008/2683.

(5)

S.I. 2005/2677 (as amended by S.I. 2006/217).