Commentary on Sections Schedule 24 – Social security, child support and tax credits Part 6 – Amendments of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 (c. 8)
873.Paragraphs 107 to 117 amend the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992.
874.Paragraph 107 amends the definition of “couple” in section 2AA to align it with the new definition introduced into the Contributions and Benefits Act for the purposes of entitlement to the income-related benefits (see commentary on paragraphs 42 to 46 above). This extends the conditionality/work-focussed interview provisions applicable for partners to same-sex couples.
875.Paragraph 108 amends section 3 to extend to civil partners the special late claim provisions for bereavement benefits in cases where death is difficult to establish.
876.Paragraph 109 amends section 13A to extend the conditions under which mortgage interest payments are made within income support and jobseeker’s allowance (income-based) to ensure that same-sex couples are treated in the same way as married couples and opposite-sex unmarried couples living together as husband and wife.
877.Paragraph 110 amends section 69 so that provisions relating to the recovery of overpayments applicable to both members of a couple, regardless of which one is the claimant, will also apply to civil partners.
878.Paragraph 111 amends section 71 so that provisions relating to overlapping benefits applicable to both members of a couple, regardless of which one is the claimant, will also apply to same-sex couples.
879.Paragraph 112 amends section 72A to provide that where maintenance payments are being collected on behalf of an income support or income-based jobseeker’s allowance claimant, the same arrangements will apply to same-sex couples as currently apply to married couples and opposite-sex unmarried couples who are living together as husband and wife. Where part or the whole of any payments are retained, they are disregarded in the calculation of the claimant’s benefit.
880.Paragraph 113 amends section 74 so that provisions relating to the recovery of social fund awards applicable to both members of a couple, regardless of which one is the claimant, will also apply to same sex-couples.
881.Paragraphs 114 and 115 amend sections 100 and 102 to extend the provisions on liability to maintain for income support and jobseeker’s allowance (income-based) to civil partners. Where one spouse or civil partner claims, the other member of the couple may be required to make payments which offset some or all of the benefit paid unless or until the couple divorce or, as the case may be, dissolve their civil partnership.
882.Paragraph 116 amends section 103B to ensure that, like spouses, civil partners will not be required to provide information which could incriminate their partner.
883.Paragraph 117 amends section 136 to apply the same annual up-rating rules to civil partners awarded a state pension on the basis of their deceased partner’s contributions as currently apply to spouses. Where a person has in payment an additional state pension on the basis of the contributions of a deceased civil partner as well as an additional state pension based on their own contributions, the up-rating order shall not apply in respect of the contributions of the deceased civil partner where the civil partner died in the tax year preceding the tax year in which the up-rating order comes into force and the person’s final relevant tax year was an earlier tax year. The up-rating order shall not apply in respect of the contributions of the person where their final relevant tax year is the tax year preceding the tax year in which the up-rating order comes into force and the deceased civil partner’s final relevant year was an earlier tax year.