Schedule 4 - Transition relating to Part 1
Schedule 4 provides for transitional arrangements for those people who are on existing benefits. Existing benefits are incapacity benefit (which includes transitional awards of incapacity benefit), severe disablement allowance and income support (on grounds of incapacity or disability).
Paragraph 1 provides a general transitional power, allowing the Department to make such provision, by regulations, as it considers necessary or expedient in connection with the coming into operation of Part 1 or the transition to employment and support allowance. The remaining paragraphs of this Schedule provide specific powers relating to the transition to the new allowance.
Paragraphs 2 to 4 provide for regulations to specify when a claim can be treated as a claim for an existing benefit and when a claim can be treated as a claim for an employment and support allowance. Regulations may make provision that a claim for an existing benefit made before the day that the provisions in respect of an employment and support allowance come into effect can be treated as a claim for an employment and support allowance.
Regulations may provide that, after the appointed day (i.e. the day on which the provisions about an employment and support allowance take effect), existing benefits cannot be claimed and an employment and support allowance is claimed instead. Paragraph 3(c) enables regulations to provide for a claim to an employment and support allowance to be treated as a claim for existing benefit. This power may be used, for example, when someone’s benefit is backdated to a period before the appointed day.
Paragraphs 5 and 6 relate to claims that are made by those who had previously been entitled to an existing benefit, who subsequently ceased to be entitled to that benefit, but who could have returned to benefit because they would have been covered by linking rules. It covers those cases where the claimant’s original claim was for an existing benefit, but the subsequent claim is made after the provisions in relation to employment and support allowance have come into operation. Regulations may provide that these cases may be awarded an employment and support allowance on terms which match wholly or partly the terms of the existing benefit.
Paragraph 7 provides for regulations to make provision for the migration of existing claimants onto an employment and support allowance. Regulations could prescribe the timing, conditions, kind and amount of any such entitlement to an employment and support allowance in such cases. Regulations could also make provision for determining whether a claimant has limited capability for work-related activity (i.e. that they would be entitled to the support component of an employment and support allowance). Paragraphs 8 and 9 provide for regulations to make provision for the conditions of continuing entitlement, or for reviewing or terminating such awards.