The Universal Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016

Regulation 26(2)

SCHEDULE 1 N.I. Meaning of payments in respect of accommodation

General N.I.

Interpretation N.I.

1.  In this Schedule—

[F1 “approved premises” means hostels which receive grants for housing support services under Article 4 of the Housing Support Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2002 in respect of offenders, with bed spaces allocated for criminal justice referrals;]

“care home” means a residential care home as defined in Article 10 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Quality, Improvement and Regulation) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 M1 [F2 , or a nursing home as defined in Article 11 of that Order] and includes an independent hospital;

“equity sharing lease” has the meaning given in regulation 27(6) (amount of the housing costs element – renters and owner-occupiers);

“exempt accommodation” has the meaning given in paragraph 4(9) of Schedule 3 to the Housing Benefit (Consequential Provisions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 M2 ;

“housing association” has the meaning given by Article 3 of the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 1992 M3 ;

“the Housing Executive” means the Northern Ireland Housing Executive;

“independent hospital” has the meaning as defined in Article 2(2) of the Health and Personal Social Services (Quality, Improvement and Regulation) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003;

“registered charity” means a charity entered in the register of charities maintained under Part 4 of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 M4 ;

“tent” means a moveable structure that is designed or adapted (solely or mainly) for the purpose of sleeping in a place for any period and that is not a caravan, a mobile home or a houseboat;

“voluntary organisation” means any association carrying on or proposing to carry on any activities otherwise than for the purpose of gain by the association or by individual members of the association.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in Sch. 1 para. 1 substituted (coming into force in accordance with reg. 1(3) of the amending Rule) by The Social Security (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 (S.R. 2017/116), regs. 1(3), 9(16)(a)

F2 Words in Sch. 1 para. 1 inserted (coming into force in accordance with reg. 1(3) of the amending Rule) by The Social Security (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 (S.R. 2017/116), regs. 1(3), 9(16)(b)

Marginal Citations

M1 S.I. 2003/431 (N.I. 9).

M2 S.R. 2006/407.

M3 S.I. 1992/1725 (N.I. 15).

M4 2008 c. 12 (N.I.) as amended by 2013 c. 3 (N.I).

Rent payments N.I.

Rent Payments N.I.

2.  “Rent payments” are such of the following as are not excluded by paragraph 3—

(a) payments of rent;

(b) payments for a licence or other permission to occupy accommodation;

(c) mooring charges payable for a houseboat;

(d) in relation to accommodation which is a caravan or mobile home, payments in respect of the site on which the accommodation stands.

Payments excluded from being rent payments N.I.

3.  The following are excluded from being “rent payments”—

(a) payments of ground rent;

(b) payments in respect of a tent or the site on which a tent stands;

(c) payments in respect of approved premises;

(d) payments in respect of a care home;

(e) payments in respect of accommodation specified in paragraph 4.

(f) payments which, are owner-occupier payments within the meaning of paragraph 5;

(g) payments which, are service charge payments within the meaning of paragraph 8.

Specified accommodation N.I.

4.—(1) The accommodation referred to in paragraph 3(e) is accommodation to which one or more of the following sub-paragraphs applies.

(2) This sub-paragraph applies to accommodation which is exempt accommodation.

(3) This sub-paragraph applies to accommodation—

(a) which is provided by a relevant body,

(b) into which the claimant has been admitted in order to meet a need for care, support or supervision, and

(c) where the claimant receives care, support or supervision.

(4) This sub-paragraph applies to accommodation which—

(a) is provided by the Housing Executive or a relevant body to the claimant because the claimant has left the home as a result of domestic violence, and

(b) consists of a building, or part of a building, which is used wholly or mainly for the non-permanent accommodation of persons who have left their homes as a result of domestic violence.

(5) This sub-paragraph applies to accommodation—

(a) which would be a hostel within the meaning of paragraph 28(6) (renters excepted from shared accommodation) of Schedule 4 (housing costs element for renters) but for it being owned or managed by the Housing Executive, and

(b) where the claimant receives care, support or supervision.

(6) In this paragraph—

“domestic violence” has the meaning given in regulation 96 (victims of domestic violence);

“relevant body” means a—

(a)

housing association,

(b)

registered charity, or

(c)

voluntary organisation.

Owner-occupier payments N.I.

Owner-occupier payments N.I.

5.—(1) “Owner-occupier payments” are—

(a) loan interest payments within the meaning of paragraph 6;

(b) alternative finance payments within the meaning of paragraph 7.

(2) Payments are excluded from sub-paragraph (1) if they are service charge payments within the meaning of paragraph 8.

Meaning of “loan interest payments” N.I.

6.  “ Loan interest payments” means payments of interest on a loan which is secured on the accommodation in respect of which the claimant meets the occupation condition.

Meaning of “alternative finance payments” N.I.

7.—(1) “ Alternative finance payments” means payments that are made under alternative finance arrangements which were entered into to enable a person to acquire an interest in the accommodation in respect of which the claimant meets the occupation condition.

(2) “Alternative finance arrangements” has the same meaning as in Part 10A of the Income Tax Act 2007 M5 .

Marginal Citations

M5 2007 c. 3; part 10A was inserted by section 365 of, and Part 1 of Schedule 2 to, the Taxation (International and Other Provisions) Act 2010 (c. 8).

Service charge payments N.I.

Service charge payments N.I.

8.—(1) “Service charge payments” are payments which—

(a) fall within sub-paragraph (2),

(b) are not excluded by sub-paragraph (3), and

(c) in any case to which paragraph 9 applies, meet all of the conditions set out in that paragraph.

(2) The payments falling within this sub-paragraph are payments of amounts which are, in whole or in part—

(a) payments of, or towards, the costs of or charges for providing services or facilities for the use or benefit of persons occupying accommodation, or

(b) fairly attributable to the costs of or charges for providing such services or facilities connected with the accommodation as are available for the use or benefit of persons occupying accommodation.

(3) Payments are excluded by this sub-paragraph where—

(a) a loan that falls within paragraph 6 was taken out for the purposes of making the payments, or

(b) the services or facilities to which the payments relate are provided for the use or benefit of any person occupying—

(i) a tent,

(ii) approved premises,

(iii) a care home, or

(iv) exempt accommodation.

(4) It is irrelevant for the purposes of sub-paragraph (2)—

(a) whether or not the payments are separately identified as relating to the costs or charges referred to in sub-paragraph (2);

(b) whether they are made in addition to or as part of any other payment (including a payment that would otherwise be regarded as a rent payment within the meaning of paragraph 2);

(c) whether they are made under the same or a different agreement as that under which the accommodation is occupied.

Additional conditions: social rented sector renters and owner-occupiers N.I.

9.—(1) This paragraph applies for the purposes of calculating the amount of the housing costs element to be included in a claimant's award of universal credit but only as regards calculations made under—

(a) Part 5 of Schedule 4 (social rented sector, other than temporary accommodation); or

(b) Schedule 5 (housing costs element for owner-occupiers).

(2) The following are the conditions referred to in paragraph 8(1)(c).

(3) The first condition is that making the payments is a condition on which the right to occupy the accommodation depends.

(4) The second condition is that the payments fall within one or more of the following categories:

Category A - Payments to maintain the general standard of the accommodation

Payments within this category are for—

(a) the external cleaning of windows, but only in relation to upper floors of a multi-storey building;

(b) other internal or external maintenance or repair of the accommodation, but only where the payments are separately identifiable as relating to such maintenance or repair, and payable by—

(i) a claimant who occupies accommodation under an equity sharing lease, or

(ii) a claimant in whose case any amount of housing costs element to be included in their award in respect of those payments would fall to be calculated under Schedule 5.

Category B - Payments for the general upkeep of areas of communal use

Payments within this category are for ongoing maintenance or cleaning of, and the supply of water, fuel or any other commodity relating to the common use of, internal or external areas, including areas for reasonable facilities (such as laundry rooms or children's play areas).

Category C - Payments in respect of basic communal services

Payments within this category are for provision, ongoing maintenance, cleaning or repair in connection with basic services generally available to all persons living in the accommodation (such as refuse collection, communal lifts, secure building access or wireless or television aerials to receive a service free of charge).

Category D – Accommodation-specific charges

Payments within this category are specific to the particular accommodation occupied by a claimant but are limited to payments for the use of essential items contained in it (such as furniture or domestic appliances).

(5) The third condition is that the costs and charges to which the payments relate are of a reasonable amount and relate to services or facilities of such description as it is reasonable to provide.

(6) The fourth condition is that the payments are none of the following—

(a) payments to the extent that they relate to the costs of or charges for providing services or facilities in respect of which payments out of public funds might otherwise be made (irrespective of whether the claimant has any entitlement to payments so made);

(b) payments in connection with the use of an asset which result in the transfer of the asset or any interest in it;

(c) payments to the extent that they relate to the costs of or charges for providing food, medical services or personal services (including personal care) of any description.

(7) Payments that are not service charge payments within the meaning of paragraph 8 by reason only that they fail to meet any of the conditions set out in sub-paragraphs (3) to (6) are nevertheless to be treated as if they were such service charge payments for the purposes of paragraphs 3(g) and 5(2).