The Housing Benefit (Habitual Residence) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2025
These Regulations amend regulation 10 of the Housing Benefit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 (“the Housing Benefit Regulations”). Regulation 10 provides that an individual claiming housing benefit who is not habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland is a “person from abroad” and is treated as not having a liability to make payments in respect of the dwelling which he occupies as his home. As a result, such an individual is not entitled to housing benefit. Regulation 10(5) specifies the circumstances in which an individual is not considered a “person from abroad” when claiming housing benefit.