This Order may be cited as the Social Security (Reciprocal Agreements) Order 1976 and shall come into operation forthwith.

In this Order, unless the context otherwise requires—

• “the Act” means the Social Security Act 1975;

• “the other country” means the party with whom the United Kingdom has made the relevant agreement set out in a Schedule to the Orders in Council mentioned in Schedule 1 to this Order;

• “year” means the period of twelve months beginning with 6th April in any year;

and other expressions have the same meanings as in the Act.

Any reference in this Order to any provision made by, or contained in, any enactment or instrument shall, except insofar as the context otherwise requires, be construed as a reference to that provision as amended or extended by any enactment or instrument, and as including a reference to any provision which it re-enacts or replaces, or which may re-enact or replace it, with or without modification.

The rules for the construction of Acts of Parliament contained in the Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the purposes of this Order and the revocation effected by it as they would apply if this Order and the Order which it revokes were Acts of Parliament and the revocation were a repeal.

Any Order in Council specified in Schedule 1 to this Order which was made under section 105 of the National Insurance Act 1965 shall, for the purposes of section 143 of the Social Security Act 1975, have effect subject to the modifications contained in the following provisions of this Order.

Any such Order in Council shall have effect as if the agreement proposed by Her Majesty's Government for modifying the agreement set out in the Schedule to such Order, so as to take account of changes in the legislation of the United Kingdom without otherwise altering the effect of such agreement, had been entered into.

Any reference in any such Order in Council specified in Schedule 1 to this Order to any matter dealt with by, or provision contained in, the National Insurance Acts 1965 to 1974 shall have effect as if it were a reference to the corresponding or most nearly corresponding matter dealt with by, or provision contained in, the Act.

Where in any agreement set out in the Schedule to any such Order in Council there is any reference or provision to the effect set out in any paragraph of column 1 of Schedule 2 to this Order, the modifications of any such Order made by the preceding provisions of this Order shall have effect as if the reference or provision set out in the corresponding paragraph of column 2 of the said Schedule 2 were substituted for the former reference or provision so however that this paragraph shall not apply to any act, omission or event occurring before 6th April 1975 or to the National Insurance (Isle of Man Reciprocal Agreement) Order 19481.