The Social Security (Persons from Abroad) Amendment Regulations 2006

Statutory Instrument 2006 No. 1026

The Social Security (Persons from Abroad) Amendment Regulations 2006

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STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS

2006 No. 1026

SOCIAL SECURITY

The Social Security (Persons from Abroad) Amendment Regulations 2006

	Made	3rd April 2006
	Laid before Parliament	7th April 2006
	Coming into force	30th April 2006

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

1.	Citation and commencement

2.	Amendment of the Council Tax Benefit Regulations 2006

3.	Amendment of the Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006

4.	Amendment of the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006

5.	Amendment of the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006

6.	Amendment of the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987

7.	Amendment of the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations 1996

8.	Amendment of the Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 2005

9.	Amendment of the State Pension Credit Regulations 2002

10.	Nationals of Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland

11.	Revocations and savings

The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 123(1)(a), (d) and (e), 131(3)(b), 135(1) and (2), 137(1) and (2), 138(1)(a) and (4) and 175(1), (3) and (4) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992[

Citation and commencement

These Regulations shall be cited as the Social Security (Persons from Abroad) Amendment Regulations 2006 and shall come into force on 30th April 2006.

Amendment of the Council Tax Benefit Regulations 2006

—(1) The Council Tax Benefit Regulations 2006[

(c) Article 6 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[8]; or

(d) Article 39 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (in a case where the person is seeking work in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland).

(4A) A person is not a person from abroad if he is—

(b) in paragraph (6), omit the definition of "a European Economic Area State".

Amendment of the Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006
3. —(1) The Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006[11] are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 7 (persons from abroad)—

(c) Article 6 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[13]; or

(d) Article 39 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (in a case where the person is seeking work in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland).

(4A) A person is not a person from abroad if he is—

(b) in paragraph (6), omit the definition of "a European Economic Area State".

Amendment of the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006
4. —(1) The Housing Benefit Regulations 2006[16] are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 10 (persons from abroad)—

(c) Article 6 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[18]; or

(d) Article 39 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (in a case where the person is seeking work in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland).

(3B) A person is not a person from abroad if he is—

(b) omit paragraph (5);

(c) in paragraph (6), omit the definition of "a European Economic Area State".

Amendment of the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006
5. —(1) The Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006[21] are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 10 (persons from abroad)—

(c) Article 6 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[23]; or

(d) Article 39 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (in a case where the person is seeking work in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland).

(4A) A person is not a person from abroad if he is—

(b) in paragraph (6), omit the definition of "a European Economic Area State".

Amendment of the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987
6. —(1) The Income Support (General) Regulations 1987[27] are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 21 (special cases)—

" "person from abroad" has the meaning given in regulation 21AA;";

(3) After that regulation insert—

Special cases: supplemental – persons from abroad

21AA.

—(1) ”Person from abroad” means, subject to the following provisions of this regulation, a claimant who is not habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland.

(2) No claimant shall be treated as habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland unless he has a right to reside in (as the case may be) the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland other than a right to reside which falls within paragraph (3).

(3) A right to reside falls within this paragraph if it is one which exists by virtue of, or in accordance with, one or more of the following—

(a) regulation 13 of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006[

(c) Article 6 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[29]; or

(d) Article 39 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (in a case where the claimant is a person seeking work in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland).

(4) A claimant is not a person from abroad if he is—

Amendment of the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations 1996
7. —(1) The Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations 1996[34] are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 85 (special cases)—

" "person from abroad" has the meaning given in regulation 85A;";

(3) After that regulation insert—

Special cases: supplemental – persons from abroad

85A.

—(1) "Person from abroad" means, subject to the following provisions of this regulation, a claimant who is not habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland.

(2) No claimant shall be treated as habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland unless he has a right to reside in (as the case may be) the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland other than a right to reside which falls within paragraph (3).

(3) A right to reside falls within this paragraph if it is one which exists by virtue of, or in accordance with, one or more of the following—

(a) regulation 13 of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006[

(4) A claimant is not a person from abroad if he is—

Amendment of the Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 2005
8. —(1) The Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 2005[41] are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 7 (funeral payments: entitlement)—

Amendment of the State Pension Credit Regulations 2002
9. —(1) The State Pension Credit Regulations 2002[43] are amended as follows.

(2) For regulation 2 (persons not in Great Britain) substitute—

Persons not in Great Britain

—(1) A person is to be treated as not in Great Britain if, subject to the following provisions of this regulation, he is not habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland.

(2) No person shall be treated as habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland unless he has a right to reside in (as the case may be) the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland other than a right to reside which falls within paragraph (3).

(3) A right to reside falls within this paragraph if it is one which exists by virtue of, or in accordance with, one or more of the following—

(a) regulation 13 of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006[

(c) Article 6 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[45]; or

(d) Article 39 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (in a case where the person is seeking work in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland).

(4) A person is not to be treated as not in Great Britain if he is—

Nationals of Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland
10. The following provisions shall apply in relation to a national of Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland or a member of his family (within the meaning of Article 2 of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC[51]) as if such a national were a national of a member State—

Revocations and savings
11. —(1) The following Regulations are revoked—

(a) the Income-related Benefits Schemes (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 3) Regulations 1994[

(2) Nothing in these Regulations shall affect the continued operation of the transitional arrangements and savings provided for in—

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

Stephen C. Timms
Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions

3rd April 2006

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Council Tax Benefit Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/215), the Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/216), the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/213), the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/214), the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987 (S.I. 1987/1967), the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/207) and the State Pension Credit Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002/1792) ("the income-related benefit regulations"). These Regulations also amend the Social Fund Maternity and Funeral Expenses (General) Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/3061) ("the social fund regulations").

The amendments are made in consequence of Council Directive No. 2004/38/EC (OJ L 158, 30.4.04, p. 77) ("the Directive"), the provisions of which are to be transposed by the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/1003).

The income-related benefit regulations provide that a claimant is ineligible for benefit where he or she is a "person from abroad", that is to say where he or she is not habitually resident in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Republic of Ireland. A person who does not have a right to reside in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Republic of Ireland cannot be treated as habitually resident. These Regulations: (a) restate more simply the definition of "person from abroad"; (b) set out afresh the categories of persons who are excluded from that definition so as to reflect the terms of the Directive; and (c) modify the right to reside requirement in the habitual residence test to take account of Article 24(2) of the Directive.

Article 24(2) provides that member States are not obliged to confer entitlement to social assistance during the first three months of residence or, in a case where persons enter the host member State in order to seek employment, for any longer period in which they can show that they are continuing to seek employment and that they have a genuine chance of being engaged. The Regulations apply Article 24(2) by providing that where a person's right of residence is of a specified type, he or she is not to be treated as habitually resident for the purpose of entitlement to income support, jobseeker's allowance, housing benefit, council tax benefit and state pension credit.

The Regulations also amend the social fund regulations to update the terminology there to reflect the Directive. They also add Switzerland to the list of places where a funeral can take place for the purposes of the social fund regulations.

Regulation 10 ensures that a national of Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland is treated as a national of a member State in certain circumstances.

Regulation 11 revokes redundant amending Regulations while preserving relevant transitional and savings provisions.

A full regulatory impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as it has no impact on the costs of business.

Notes:

[1] 1992 c.4; sections 123, 131, 135 and 137 were amended, with respect to council tax benefit, by Schedule 9 to the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (c.14), paragraphs 1(1), 4, 8 and 9. Sections 137(1) and 138(4) are cited because of the meaning given to the word "prescribed". Section 138(1) was substituted by section 70(1) of the Social Security Act 1998 (c.14). Section 175(1), (3) and (4) is applied to provisions of the State Pension Credit Act 2002 (c.16) by section 19(1) of that Act.

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[2] 1995 c.18; section 35(1) is cited because of the meaning given to the words "applicable amount", "prescribed" and "regulations".back

[3] 2002 c.16; section 17(1) is cited because of the meaning given to the word "regulations".back

[4] See section 176(1) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c.5) which was amended by paragraph 23 of Schedule 9 to the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (c.14).back

[5] See section 173(1)(b) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c.5); paragraph 67 of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers Act 1995 (c.18) and paragraph 20 of Schedule 2 to the State Pension Credit Act 2002 (c.16) added those Acts respectively to the list of "the relevant enactments" in respect of which regulations must normally be referred to the Committee.back

[6] S.I. 2006/215.back

[7] S.I. 2006/1003.back

[8] OJ L 158, 30.4.04, p. 77.back