The title of these Regulations is the Care and Support (Financial Assessment) (Wales) Regulations 2015.

These Regulations come into force on 6 April 2016.

These Regulations apply in relation to Wales.

Where reference is made in these Regulations to the application of a provision of the Income Support Regulations, any reference to “claimant” in the provision of the Income Support Regulations is to be construed as a reference to A.

In these Regulations any reference to a resident’s accommodation in a care home, or to accommodation provided for a resident in a care home, is to be construed in the case of a resident who is a prospective resident as a reference to accommodation to be provided for that resident under section 35, 36, 40 or 45 of the Act, or where the prospective resident is in receipt of direct payments, as a reference to accommodation which will be secured by virtue of sections 50 or 52 of the Act.

In these Regulations references to provision of or securing of care and support are, in the case of carer, to be read as meaning the provision or securing of support.

Subject to paragraph (2), a local authority must allow A 15 working days, or such longer time limit as it thinks reasonable, to provide the information and documents described in regulation 3(f).

If A makes a reasonable request for an extension of the time limit specified in paragraph (1), giving reasons why the extension is required, a local authority must agree to the request and advise A of the period of the extension.

If a local authority refuses a request for an extension of the time limit, it must inform A of its refusal and it must give reasons for its refusal.

The information provided by a local authority in accordance with regulation 3 may be in electronic or paper format, and must be in a format that is appropriate to A’s communication needs.

The information and documents to be provided by A under regulation 3(f) must be in electronic or paper format or such other format that the local authority has agreed to accept.

The duty in paragraph (1) does not apply where A falls within any of the circumstances specified in regulation 7.

Where paragraph (1)(c) applies, a local authority may, if it considers that it has sufficient information, make an assessment of A’s financial resources on the basis of the partial information or partial document (or both) that is in its possession.

Where a local authority carries out a financial assessment in accordance with regulation 6 (duty to carry out a financial assessment) or regulation 8 (power to carry out a financial assessment), it must ensure that the process of assessment that it employs gives effect to the requirements of this regulation.

Where a local authority is meeting or proposing to meet A’s needs for care and support, or where it is making, or is proposing to make, direct payments towards the cost of securing care and support to meet A’s needs by the provision of accommodation in a care home, it must calculate A’s capital in accordance with the provisions of Part 4.

The provision made in paragraphs (2) and (3) does not affect the discretion of a local authority to apply criteria that are more generous to A than the provision made by these Regulations.

Where, immediately before the coming into force of these Regulations an assessment of A’s financial resources has effect, such assessment will continue to have effect notwithstanding that it was not made in accordance with the Act and these Regulations.

An assessment referred to in paragraph (1) will continue to have effect until replaced by an assessment of A’s financial resources carried out in accordance with the Act and these Regulations.

A’s income is to be calculated on a weekly basis by determining, in accordance with this Part, the weekly amount of A’s total income.

For the purposes of paragraph (1) income includes capital treated as income under regulation 16 and notional income under regulation 17.

Earnings derived from employment as an employed earner or a self-employed earner are to be disregarded in the calculation of A’s income for the purposes of the financial assessment.

Any capital payable to A by instalments which are outstanding on the date on which A first becomes liable to pay for (or where A is or will be receiving direct payments, contribute or make reimbursements towards the cost of securing the provision of) the care and support, is to be treated as income if the aggregate of the instalments outstanding and the amount of A’s capital calculated in accordance with Part 4 exceeds the amount specified in regulation 41(1) of the Income Support Regulations (capital treated as income).

Any payment received under an annuity is to be treated as income.

Any earnings to the extent that they are not a payment of income are to be treated as income.

Subject to paragraph (5), A is to be treated as possessing any capital paid or due to be paid to a local authority by a third party pursuant to an agreement between the local authority and the third party made in connection with A’s liability to pay, contribute or make reimbursements to the local authority towards the cost of accommodation provided or secured for A under the Act.

A is not to be treated as possessing any voluntary payment of capital made by a third party to a local authority for the purpose of discharging any arrears of the payments, contributions or reimbursements required by the local authority from A for accommodation provided or secured under the Act.

Where an agreement or court order provides that payments are to be made to A in consequence of any personal injury to A and that such payments are to be made wholly or partly by way of periodical payments, any such periodical payments received by A, to the extent that they are not a payment of income, are to be treated as income.

A is to be treated as possessing income which A has deprived himself or herself for the purpose of decreasing the amount A is or may be liable to pay towards the cost of meeting or securing the provision of care and support to meet A’s needs.

A is to be treated as possessing any income which would be treated as income possessed by a claimant of income support under regulation 42(2) to (4A) of the Income Support Regulations (notional income).

Subject to paragraph (4), A is to be treated as possessing any income paid or due to be paid to a local authority by a third party pursuant to an agreement between the local authority and the third party made in connection with A’s liability to pay, contribute, or make reimbursements to the local authority towards the cost of accommodation provided or secured for A under the Act.

A is not to be treated as possessing any voluntary payment of income made by a third party to a local authority for the purpose of discharging any arrears of the payments, contributions or reimbursements required by the authority from A for accommodation provided or secured in accordance with the Act.

The capital of A to be taken into account in a financial assessment is, subject to paragraph (2), to be the whole of A’s capital calculated in accordance with this Part and any income treated as capital under regulation 19.

Any capital, where applicable, specified in Schedule 2 is to be disregarded in the calculation of the person’s capital under paragraph (1).

Any holiday pay which is not earnings is to be treated as capital.

Except income derived from capital disregarded under paragraphs 1, 4, 8, 14, 22 and 24 of Schedule 2, any income of A which is derived from capital is to be treated as capital but only on the date on which it is normally due to be paid to A.

Where A is an employed earner, any advance of earnings or any loan made by A’s employer is to be treated as capital.

Any voluntary payment of income made by a third party to A for the purpose of helping A to discharge any arrears of the payments, contributions, or reimbursements required by the local authority from the person for accommodation provided or secured in accordance with the Act is to be treated as the capital of A.

In this regulation, “the Fund”, “the Eileen Trust”, “the Macfarlane Trust”, “the Macfarlane (Special Payments) Trust”, “the Macfarlane (Special Payments) (No. 2) Trust” and “the Independent Living Fund” have the same meaning as in the Income Support Regulations.

Subject to paragraph (3), A may be treated as possessing any payment of capital which would be treated as capital possessed by a claimant of income support under regulation 51(2) or (3) of the Income Support Regulations (notional capital).

For the purposes of paragraph (2), regulation 51(2)(c) of the Income Support Regulations applies as if for the reference to Schedule 10 to the Income Support Regulations there were substituted a reference to Schedule 2 (calculation of capital).

Where A is treated as possessing capital under paragraph (1) or (2), the provisions of this Part apply for the purposes of calculating its amount as if it were actual capital A does possess.

Where A is treated as possessing capital under regulation 22 (“notional capital”), for each week or part of a week that the local authority has determined that A is liable to pay, contribute or make reimbursements towards the cost of their care and support, at a higher rate than that at which A would have been assessed as liable to pay, contribute, or make reimbursements if A had had no notional capital, the amount of A’s notional capital is to be reduced by the method set out in paragraph (2).

This paragraph applies where the local authority is satisfied that A is beneficially entitled in possession to a share which is less than or, as the case may be, more than an equal share of the whole beneficial estate.

Where paragraph (2) applies A’s share of the whole beneficial interest will be the actual share (as determined by the local authority) and is to be treated as if it were actual capital.