The Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

Regulation 34(1)

SCHEDULE 5 Sums disregarded from claimant’s earnings

1.  Where 2 or more of paragraphs 2 to 5 apply in any particular case the overall maximum sum which falls to be disregarded in that case under those paragraphs is restricted to—

(a) £25 in the case of a lone parent;

(b) £20 in any other case.

2.  In a case where a claimant is a lone parent, £25 of earnings.

3.—(1) In a case of earnings from any employment or employments to which sub-paragraph (2) applies, £20.

(2) This paragraph applies to employment—

(a) as a part-time fire and rescue officer employed by the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service Board established under Article 3 of the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006(1);

(b) as an auxiliary coastguard in respect of coast rescue activities;

(c) in the manning or launching of a lifeboat if the employment is part-time;

(d) as a member of any territorial or reserve force prescribed in Part I of Schedule 6 to the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001(2);

(e) as a person in the army whose service is restricted to part-time service in Northern Ireland pursuant to section 1 of the Army Act 1992(3), regulations made under section 2 of the Armed Forces Act 1966(4), or the terms of his commission;

(f) as a part-time member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland Reserve appointed under section 37 of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000(5) or a part-time police reserve trainee appointed under section 40 of that Act.

(3) If—

(a) any of the earnings of the claimant or, if he has a partner, his partner, or both of them, are disregarded under sub-paragraph (1); and

(b) either of them has, or they both have, other earnings,

so much of those other earnings as would not, in aggregate with the earnings disregarded under that sub-paragraph, exceed £20.

4.—(1) If the claimant or, if he has a partner, his partner is a carer, or both are carers, £20 of any earnings received from his or their employment.

(2) Where the carer premium is awarded in respect of the claimant and of any partner of his, their earnings shall for the purposes of this paragraph be aggregated, but the amount to be disregarded in accordance with sub-paragraph (1) shall not exceed £20 of the aggregated amount.

(3) In this paragraph the claimant or his partner is a carer if paragraph 9 of Schedule 4 is satisfied in respect of him.

5.—(1) £20 is disregarded if the claimant or, if he has a partner, his partner—

(a) is in receipt of—

(i) long-term incapacity benefit under section 30A of the Act(6);

(ii) severe disablement allowance under section 68 of the Act(7);

(iii) attendance allowance;

(iv) disability living allowance under sections 71 to 76 of the Act(8);

(v) any mobility supplement under article 20 of the Naval, Military and Air Forces Etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 2006(9) (including such a supplement by virtue of any other scheme or order) or under article 25A of the Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme I983(10);

(vi) the disability element or the severe disability element of working tax credit under Schedule 2 to the Working Tax Credit Regulations;

(b) has been certified as blind and in consequence is registered as blind in a register maintained by or on behalf of a Health and Social Services Board; or

(c) is, or is treated as, incapable of work in accordance with the provisions of, and regulations made under, Part XIIA of the Act (incapacity for work), and has been incapable, or has been treated as incapable, of work for a continuous period of not less than—

(i) in the case of a claimant who is terminally ill within the meaning of section 30B(4) of the Act(11) (incapacity benefit: rate), 196 days;

(ii) in any other case, 364 days.

(2) Subject to sub-paragraph (3), £20 is disregarded if the claimant or, if he has a partner, his partner has, within a period of 8 weeks ending on the day in respect of which the claimant or his partner attains the qualifying age for state pension credit, had an award of housing benefit and—

(a) £20 was disregarded in respect of earnings taken into account in that award;

(b) the person whose earnings qualified for the disregard continues in employment after the termination of that award.

(3) The disregard of £20 specified in sub-paragraph (2) applies so long as there is no break, other than a break which does not exceed 8 weeks, in a person’s entitlement to housing benefit or in employment following the first day in respect of which that benefit is awarded.

(4) £20 is the maximum amount which may be disregarded under this paragraph, notwithstanding that, where the claimant has a partner, both the claimant and his partner satisfy the requirements of this paragraph.

6.  Any amount or the balance of any amount which would fall to be disregarded under paragraph 19 or 20 of Schedule 6 had the claimant’s income which does not consist of earnings been sufficient to entitle him to the full disregard thereunder.

7.  Except where the claimant or his partner qualifies for a £20 disregard under the preceding provisions of this Schedule—

(a) £5 shall be disregarded if a claimant who has no partner has earnings;

(b) £10 shall be disregarded if a claimant who has a partner has earnings.

8.  Any earnings other than earnings referred to in regulation 31(8)(b), derived from employment which ended before the day in respect of which the claimant first satisfies the conditions for entitlement to housing benefit.

9.—(1) In a case where the claimant is a person who satisfies at least one of the conditions set out in sub-paragraph (2), and his net earnings equal or exceed the total of the amounts set out in sub-paragraph (3), the amount of his earnings that falls to be disregarded under this Schedule shall be increased by £14·90.

(2) The conditions of this sub-paragraph are that—

(a) the claimant, or if he has a partner, either the claimant or his partner, is a person to whom regulation 20(1)(c) of the Working Tax Credit Regulations applies;

(b) the claimant—

(i) is, or any partner of his is, aged at least 25 and is engaged in remunerative work for on average not less than 30 hours per week;

(ii) if he is a member of a couple—

(aa) at least one member of that couple is engaged in remunerative work for on average not less than 16 hours per week;

(bb) his applicable amount includes a family premium under paragraph 3 of Schedule 4;

(iii) is a lone parent who is engaged in remunerative work for on average not less than 16 hours per week, or

(iv) is, or if he has a partner, one of them is, engaged in remunerative work for on average not less than 16 hours per week, and paragraph 5(1) is satisfied in respect of that person; or

(c) the claimant is, or, if he has a partner, one of them is, a person to whom regulation 18(3) of the Working Tax Credit Regulations (eligibility for 50 plus element) applies, or would apply if an application for working tax credit were to be made in his case.

(3) The following are the amounts referred to in sub-paragraph (1)—

(a) any amount disregarded under this Schedule;

(b) any amount of child care charges calculated as deductible under regulation 28(1)( c); and

(c) £14·90.

(4) The provisions of regulation 6 shall apply in determining whether or not a person works for on average not less than 30 hours per week, but as if the reference to 16 hours in paragraph (1) of that regulation were a reference to 30 hours.

10.  Where a payment of earnings is made in a currency other than sterling, any banking charge or commission payable in converting that payment into sterling.

(1)

S.I. 2006/1254 (N.I. 9)

(2)

S.I. 2001/1004

(3)

1992 c. 39

(4)

1966 c. 45; section 2 was amended by section 2 of the Army Act 1992

(5)

2000 c.32

(6)

Section 30A was inserted by Article 3(1) of the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 (S.I. 1994/1898 (N.I.12)) and amended by Article 61 of the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11)) and paragraph 68 of Schedule 24 to the Civil Partnership Act 2004

(7)

Section 68 was amended by Article 11 of, and paragraph 18 of Schedule 1 to, the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 and regulation 2(2) of S.R. 1994 No. 370 and repealed by Schedule 10 to the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999, subject to savings in Article 4 of S.R. 2000 No. 332 (C. 14)

(8)

Sections 71 to 73 were amended by Article 64 of the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999

(9)

S.I. 2006/606

(10)

S.I. 1983/686; article 25A was inserted by S.I. 1983/1164 and amended by S.I. 1983/1540, S.I. 1986/628, S.I. 1990/1300, S.I. 1991/708, S.I. 1992/702, S.I. 1995/445 and S.I. 2001/420

(11)

Section 30B was inserted by Article 4(1) of the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (Northern Ireland) Order 1994