A person may not count any period of membership if his contributions for that period have been returned to him.

A person may not count any period of membership if his rights in respect of it have been transferred by payment of a transfer value (see Part 9).

A person may not count as a period of membership for the purpose of calculating any benefit under regulations 16 (normal retirement) to 20 (early leavers: ill-health) or 29 (calculation on leaving early) to 31 (early payment of pension: ill-health) of the Benefits Regulations so much of his membership as requires to be excluded to reduce the value under regulation 70(2)(b) by the amount recovered or retained under regulation 70 (recovery or retention where former member has misconduct obligation).

Where a person pays contributions under regulation 16 (contributions during trade dispute absence) for any period, that period counts as a period within regulation 6 (periods of membership) of the Benefits Regulations even if his contract of employment did not subsist throughout that period.

A period of membership under F1regulation 6(a) of the Benefits Regulations includes any period for which a member is treated as having paid contributions under regulation 13 (concurrent employments) or 41(4) (rights to return of contributions) of these Regulations.

In this regulation—

• “qualifying member” means a member who is party to the Agreement;

• “newly qualifying member” means a member who is employed as a classroom assistant by a voluntary grammar school or a grant maintained integrated school within the meaning of the Education Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 1989; and

• “the Agreement” means the Collective Agreement for the Joint Negotiating Council of the Education and Library Boards dated 30th November 2007.

• F6“the Agreement No. 2” means the Collective Agreement for the Joint Negotiating Council of the Education and Library Boards reached on 27th March 2015;

• “the Agreement No. 2 qualifying member” means a member who was party to the Agreement No. 2;