Amendment of the State Pension Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003 N.I.

2.—(1) The State Pension Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003 M1 are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 5 (persons treated as being or not being members of the same household) M2 —

(a) in paragraph (2), for “paragraph (1)” substitute “ paragraphs (1) and (5) ”;

(b) after paragraph (2), add—

“(3) Paragraph (5) applies where a claimant (“C”), who has attained the qualifying age, would otherwise not be entitled to either state pension credit or universal credit, because—

(a) but for that paragraph, C would be a member of the same household as a partner who has not attained the qualifying age and therefore a member of a mixed-age couple excluded from state pension credit by virtue of section 4(1A) of the Act, and

(b) C is neither entitled to universal credit jointly with that partner, nor entitled to universal credit as a single person, in one of the cases set out in paragraph (4).

(4) The cases are where C is not entitled to universal credit because C has attained the qualifying age and—

(a) any of the following paragraphs of regulation 3 of the Universal Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 M3 (couples) applies, and in the case of paragraph (ii) below, one of the following circumstances applies—

(i) paragraph (2) (treatment of certain couples – universal credit may only be claimed as a single person);

(ii) paragraph (3) (treatment of polygamous marriages), so that C is not entitled to universal credit because C may only claim universal credit either as one of two parties to a polygamous marriage to be treated as a couple where the other party has also attained the qualifying age, or as a remaining party to such a marriage to be treated as single;

(iii) paragraph (5) (absence from the household – universal credit may only be claimed as a single person); or

(b) C lost joint entitlement to universal credit as part of a mixed-age couple due to one of the following changes of circumstances taking effect from a date (namely the first day of the universal credit assessment period in which the change occurred) that is earlier than when, but for paragraph (5), the same change would take effect for the purposes of state pension credit, those changes being where—

(i) C and their partner are no longer a couple; or

(ii) C is party to a marriage that is no longer polygamous and C's remaining spouse has attained the qualifying age.

(5) Where this paragraph applies—

(a) C and their partner, who are to be treated as a non-polygamous couple in accordance with sub-paragraph (a)(ii) of paragraph (4), or who are no longer parties to a polygamous marriage in accordance with sub-paragraph (b)(ii), are to be treated as members of the same household as each other but not of that of any party (or parties) with whom they are not part of a couple in accordance with those provisions; or

(b) C, who is to be treated as single in accordance with sub-paragraph (a)(i) to (iii) of paragraph (4), or is single in accordance with sub-paragraph (b)(i), is to be treated as though C is not a member of the same household as any party (or parties) with whom C is not part of a couple in accordance with those provisions,

where paragraph (4)(a) applies, with effect from the date on which the relevant paragraph of regulation 3 of the Universal Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 first applies to C, or, where paragraph (4)(b) applies, with effect from the date referred to in paragraph (4)(b) on which C lost entitlement to universal credit.

(6) In this regulation—

(a) in relation to universal credit entitlement, “assessment period” has the meaning prescribed by regulation 22 of the Universal Credit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016;

(b) “mixed-age”, in respect of a couple or a marriage, means where one member has attained the qualifying age and the other has not;

(c) the definition in sub-paragraph (b) includes a polygamous marriage where at least one party to the marriage has attained the qualifying age and at least one has not; and

(d) “polygamous marriage” means a marriage during which a party to it is married to more than one person and which took place under the laws of a country that permits polygamy.”.

(3) In regulation 15(1) (income for the purposes of the Act) M4 , before sub-paragraph (a) insert—

“(za) universal credit;”.

Marginal Citations

M1 S.R. 2003 No. 28.

M2 Paragraph (3) of regulation 5 was omitted by regulation 3(3)(b) of S.R. 2008 No. 410 and the regulation was modified by S.R. 2020 No. 63. There have been other amendments that are not relevant here.

M3 S.R. 2016 No. 216.

M4 Regulation 15(1) was amended by S.R. 2012 No. 121, S.I. 2013/3021, S.R. 2015 No. 146, S.R. 2016 No. 228, S.R. 2017 No. 66, S.R. 2018 No. 192, S.R. 2019 No. 23 and S.I. 2019/1060.