S.I. No. 119/1979 - Social Welfare (Voluntary Contributors) Regulations, 1979.

S.I. No. 119 of 1979.

SOCIAL WELFARE (VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTORS) REGULATIONS, 1979.

The Minister for Social Welfare, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 3 , 4 (2) and 37 (2) of the Social Welfare Act, 1952 (No. 11 of 1952) and by sections 6 (2) and 8 (2) of that Act (as amended by sections 5 (3) and 6 (1) respectively of the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1978 (No. 25 of 1978)) and by section 20 of the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1978 , hereby makes the following Regulations:—

1 Citation and Commencement.

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Voluntary Contributors) Regulations, 1979 and shall come into operation on the 6th day of April, 1979.

2 Interpretation.

2. In these regulations—

"the Act of 1952" means the Social Welfare Act, 1952 ;

"the Minister" means the Minister for Social Welfare;

"existing voluntary contributor" means a person who had become a voluntary contributor under the provisions of the Social Welfare (Voluntary Contributors) Regulations, 1953 ( S.I. No. 13 of 1953 );

"reckonable income" has the meaning assigned by article 4.

3 Revocation of earlier Regulations.

3. The Social Welfare (Voluntary Contributors) Regulations, 1953, the Social Welfare (Voluntary Contributors) (Amendment) Regulations, 1960, ( S.I. No. 277 of 1960 ) and the Social Welfare (Voluntary Contributors) Regulations, 1961 ( S.I. No. 170 of 1961 ) are hereby revoked.

4 Definition of reckonable income.

4. For the purposes of these Regulations reckonable income means all income (other than non- pecuniary income) derived from any employment, including any trade, business, profession, office or vocation, reduced, in the case of income to which the Income Tax Act, 1967 (No. 6 of 1967) applies, by so much of any deduction allowed by virtue of section 222 or 233 of that Act or Chapter II of Part I of the Finance Act, 1972 (No. 19 of 1972) as is to be deducted from or set off against that income in charging it to income tax.

5 Reckonable income in the case of persons becoming or ceasing as voluntary contributors.

5. In determining the voluntary contribution payable by a person in a contribution year in which he becomes a voluntary contributor, or ceases to be such a contributor by reason of his becoming an employed contributor or his attaining pensionable age, his reckonable income for the preceding contribution year shall be calculated as a proportion of his reckonable income in that year equivalent to the proportion the part of the contribution year in which he becomes or ceases to be a voluntary contributor as aforesaid, bears to the whole of that contribution year.

6 Existing voluntary contributors.

6. Any person who was a voluntary contributor on the 5th day of April, 1979 shall continue as a voluntary contributor on the 6th day of April, 1979.

7 Application to become a voluntary contributor.

7. (1) The application to be made under section 4 (2) of the Act of 1952 to become a voluntary contributor shall be made to the Minister in writing in the form for the time being approved by him for that purpose or in such other manner as the Minister may accept in the circumstances of any particular case.

(2) The application shall be made within twelve months after the end of the contribution year in which the applicant ceases to be an employed contributor or in which an employment contribution was credited to him in accordance with the provisions of the Social Welfare (Contributions) Regulations, 1953 to 1978, or such longer period as the Minister, having regard to the circumstances of the particular case, may allow.

8 Commencement as a voluntary contributor.

8. A person who wishes to become a voluntary contributor under section 4 (2) of the Act of 1952 shall elect to become a voluntary contributor as from the beginning of the contribution week next following the contribution week in which he ceased to be an employed contributor.

9 Evidence of reckonable income.

9. (1) A person applying to become a voluntary contributor shall, at the time of making the application, and thereafter within five months from the end of each contribution year subsequent to the contribution year in respect of which the person first pays a voluntary contribution, furnish such evidence of his reckonable income as the Minister may require in order to calculate the amount of the voluntary contribution to be paid by him.

(2) An existing voluntary contributor shall submit such evidence of his reckonable income as the Minister may require within five months from the 6th day of April, 1979 and thereafter within five months from the end of each subsequent contribution year.

10 Arrangements for payment of voluntary contributions.

10. A voluntary contributor may, on receipt of notification of the amount of the voluntary contribution due by him in respect of any contribution year, elect to pay that contribution in one payment or in such instalments as may be agreed by him with the Minister.

11 Due dates of payment of voluntary contributions.

11. (1) A voluntary contribution paid in one payment shall be paid before the end of the contribution year to which such contribution relates.

(2) In the case of a voluntary contribution paid by instalments, all instalments shall be paid before the end of the contribution year to which such contribution relates.

12 Voluntary contributions paid after due dates.

12. (1) A voluntary contribution paid—

( a ) after the date on which such contribution is due in accordance with article 11 but before the expiration of five months after the end of the contribution year to which it relates, or

( b ) after the date on which it is due in accordance with article 11 but before the expiration of twelve months after the end of the contribution year to which it relates, if the Minister is satisfied that there is good cause for late payment,

shall for the purposes of old age (contributory) pension, retirement pension, widow's (contributory) pension and deserted wife's benefit as on and from the Thursday next following the expiration of twenty-eight days after the date on which such contribution has been paid in the case of a voluntary contribution paid in one payment, or twenty-eight days after the date on which the final instalment has been paid in the case of a voluntary contribution paid by instalments, be treated as having been paid on that date.

(2) A voluntary contribution paid—

( a ) after the date on which such contribution is due in accordance with article 11 but before the expiration of five months after the end of the contribution year to which it relates, or

( b ) after the date on which such contribution is due in accordance with article 11 but before the expiration of twelve months after the end of the contribution year to which it relates, if the Minister is satisfied that there is good cause for late payment,

shall be treated as having been paid on the due date in determining whether the relevant contribution conditions are satisfied for the purposes of death grant.

(3) A voluntary contribution which is not paid within the periods specified in the preceding sub-articles shall be treated as not having been paid.

13 Refund of voluntary contributions.

13. Where a voluntary contribution is treated, in accordance with article 12 (3), as not having been paid the amount which has been paid by a voluntary contributor in respect of such contribution shall be refunded to him by the Minister.

14 Determination of reckonable income.

14. Where in any contribution year a voluntary contributor had no reckonable income or where such income did not exceed the sum of £1,500, in determining the amount of a voluntary contribution to be paid by such contributor in the next following contribution year the amount of his reckonable income shall be taken to be £1,500.

15 Transitional arrangement.

15. For the purpose of determining the voluntary contribution payable by a voluntary contributor in the contribution year commencing on the 6th day of April, 1979, the preceding contribution year shall be deemed to be the year commencing on the 6th day of April, 1978 and ending on the 5th day of April, 1979.

16 Calculation of amount of voluntary contributions.

16. A voluntary contribution payable by a voluntary contributor shall be calculated to the nearest £0.01 and any amount of £0.005 or less shall be disregarded.

17 Saver of rights of previously employed contributor.

17. An employed contributor who becomes a voluntary contributor shall have the same right to disability benefit, unemployment benefit, maternity benefit, invalidity pension, or treatment benefit as he wouldhave had if, following his ceasing to be an employed contributor, he had not become a voluntary contributor.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Social Welfare this 5th

day of April, 1979.

CHARLES J. HAUGHEY,

Minister for Social Welfare.

The Minister for Finance hereby consents to the making of the foregoing Regulations.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Finance this 5th day of April, 1979.

SEOIRSE Ó COLLA,

Minister for Finance.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

The Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1978 provides for a fully pay-related system of social insurance contributions including voluntary contributions. These Regulations define the income on which the amount of a person's voluntary contribution will be calculated and they also provide for the time within which a person must apply to become a voluntary contributor and the manner in which the contribution may be paid. The Regulations also provide the time limits within which the contribution must be paid and provision is made for a refund of the contribution where it is not paid within the prescribed limits.

It is also provided that, where a voluntary contributor has no income in the preceding contribution year or where his income in that year did not exceed the sum of £1,500 he shall be regarded as having an income of £1,500 in the preceding contribution year for the purpose of determining the amount of the voluntary contribution to be paid by him.