Social Welfare Act, 1989

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR No. 4/1989

Number 4 of 1989
SOCIAL WELFARE ACT, 1989
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
PART I
Preliminary
Section 1. Short title, construction and collective citation. 2. Definitions.
PART II
Increases
3. Social insurance benefits (new rates). 4. Social assistance payments (new rates). 5. Child benefit. 6. Widower’s (non-contributory) pension and deserted husband’s allowance. 7. Definition of “qualified child”. 8. Pay-related social insurance contributions (increase in earnings ceiling) 9. Self-employment contributions (increase in earnings ceiling). 10. Pay-related benefit. 11. Discontinuance of non-urban rates of unemployment assistance.
PART III
Liability to Maintain Family
12. Insertion of Part X in Principal Act (Liability to maintain family), repeals. 13. Amendment of Family Law (Maintenance of Spouses and Children) Act, 1976.
PART IV
Miscellaneous Amendments
14. Option of claiming benefit or assistance in certain circumstances. 15. Payments by a health board in respect of children boarded out to be exempt from calculation of means. 16. Regulations to enable persons to be appointed to receive and deal with benefit or assistance. 17. Amendment of Part I of First Schedule to Principal Act (employments for the purposes of section 5 of Principal Act). 18. Garda Síochána to be covered under occupational injuries insurance. 19. Notification by employer etc. of commencement of employment. 20. Evidence of records, computer readouts, photocopies, microfilms and copies of original documents in proceedings. 21. Records of employees produced to inspectors to be prima facie evidence. 22. Employers to reimburse Minister for benefit etc. falsely obtained through collusion. 23. Regulations under section 17D of Principal Act. 24. Pre-retirement allowance. 25. Amendment of section 79 (12) of Principal Act (conditions for receipt of old age (contributory) pension). 26. Application of the provisions of the Principal Act, etc. by regulations. 27. Overlapping benefits. 28. Amendment of section 29 (4) (title to benefit) and section 138 (1) (b) (statutory conditions for assistance) of Principal Act. 29. Sanction of Minister for Finance in relation to certain regulations. 30. Prescribed relative allowance may by regulations be paid directly to prescribed relative. 31. Disqualification for receipt of benefit.
SCHEDULE A
SCHEDULE B
Acts Referred to Central Bank Act, 1971 1971, No. 24 Family Law (Maintenance of Spouses and Children) Act, 1976 1976, No. 11 Garda Síochána (Compensation) Acts, 1941 and 1945 Housing (Private Rented Dwellings) Act, 1982 1982, No. 6 National Archives Act, 1986 1986, No. 11 Social Welfare Act, 1973 1973, No. 10 Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981 1981, No. 1 Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981 1981, No. 3 Social Welfare Act, 1982 1982, No. 2 Social Welfare Act, 1983 1983, No. 3 Social Welfare Act, 1984 1984, No. 5 Social Welfare Act, 1985 1985, No. 5 Social Welfare (No. 2) Act, 1985 1985, No. 14 Social Welfare Act, 1986 1986, No. 8 Social Welfare (No. 2) Act, 1987 1987, No. 29 Social Welfare Act, 1988 1988, No. 7 Social Welfare Acts, 1981 to 1988 Status of Children Act, 1987 1987, No. 26
Number 4 of 1989
SOCIAL WELFARE ACT, 1989
AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE SOCIAL WELFARE ACTS, 1981 TO 1988, AND THE FAMILY LAW (MAINTENANCE OF SPOUSES AND CHILDREN) ACT, 1976 . [26th March, 1989]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:
PART I Preliminary
	Short title, construction and collective citation.	1.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Social Welfare Act, 1989.
	(2) The Social Welfare Acts, 1981 to 1988, and this Act shall be construed together as one and may be cited together as the Social Welfare Acts, 1981 to 1989.
	Definitions.	2.—In this Act—
	“the Act of 1988” means the Social Welfare Act, 1988 ;
	“the Principal Act” means the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981 ;
	“the Social Welfare Acts” means the Principal Act and every enactment, whether passed before or after this Act, which is to be construed with it as one Act.
PART II Increases
	Social insurance benefits (new rates).	3.—(1) The Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for Parts I to IV (inserted by section 3 of the Act of 1988) of the Second Schedule thereto of the Parts set out in Schedule A to this Act.
	(2) This section shall come into operation—
	(a) in so far as it relates to unemployment benefit, on the 20th day of July, 1989,
	(b) in so far as it relates to disability benefit, maternity allowance, injury benefit, disablement gratuity and disablement pension, on the 24th day of July, 1989,
	(c) in so far as it relates to deserted wife’s benefit, invalidity pension and retirement pension, on the 27th day of July, 1989, and
	(d) in so far as it relates to death benefit under section 50, 51 or 52 of the Principal Act, old age (contributory) pension, widow's (contributory) pension and orphan’s (contributory) allowance, on the 28th day of July, 1989.
	Social assistance payments (new rates).	4.—(1) The Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for Parts I and III (inserted by section 4 of the Act of 1988) of the Fourth Schedule thereto of the Parts set out in Schedule B to this Act.
	(2) This section shall come into operation—
	(a) in so far as it relates to unemployment assistance, on the 19th day of July, 1989,
	(b) in so far as it relates to deserted wife’s allowance, prisoner’s wife’s allowance, social assistance allowance and single woman’s allowance, on the 27th day of July, 1989,
	(c) in so far as it relates to old age pension, blind pension, widow’s (non-contributory) pension and orphan’s (non-contributory) pension, on the 28th day of July, 1989,
	(d) in so far as it relates to supplementary welfare allowance, on the 24th day of July, 1989,
	(e) in so far as it relates to pre-retirement allowance, on the commencement of section 28 of the Act of 1988,
	(f) in so far as it relates to widower’s (non-contributory) pension, on the commencement of section 198A (inserted by section 6 (1) (a) of this Act) of the Principal Act, and
	(g) in so far as it relates to deserted husband’s allowance, on the commencement of section 198B (inserted by section 6 (1) (b) of this Act) of the Principal Act.
	Child benefit.	5.—(1) Section 225 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (1) (inserted by section 3 (6) of the Social Welfare Act, 1982 , and as amended by section 17 of the Social Welfare Act, 1986 ) of the following subsection:
	“(1) Subject to this Part and the regulations thereunder, a person who is qualified for child benefit shall, so long as he remains so qualified, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas a monthly benefit of the amount set out in column (1) of Part IV of the Fourth Schedule in respect of each of the first four qualified children and, in addition, the amount set out in column (2) of that Part in respect of each qualified child (if any) in excess of four.”.
	(2) The Fourth Schedule to the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for Part IV (inserted by section 17 of the Social Welfare Act, 1986 ) of the following Part:
	“PART IV
	Amounts of Child Benefit
Amount for each of first four children Amount for each child in excess of four (1) (2) £15.05 £21.75
	”.
	(3) This section shall come into operation on the 3rd day of October, 1989.
	Widower’s (non-contributory) pension and deserted husband’s allowance.	6.—(1) The Principal Act is hereby amended—
	(a) by the insertion after section 198 of the following section:
	“Chapter 5A
	Allowances for Certain Men
	Widower’s (non-contributory) pension.
	198A.—(1) A widower’s (non-contributory) pension shall, subject to regulations, be paid to a widower who has at least one qualified child residing with him and who satisfies the conditions as to means for entitlement to widow’s (non-contributory) pension under Chapter 4 of Part III.
	(2) The rate of a widower’s (non-contributory) pension payable to a person shall be the same as the rate of a widow’s (non-contributory) pension payable to a widow under Chapter 4 of Part III.
	(3) A widower who has remarried shall not for the purposes of this section be regarded as the widower of his former wife.
	(4) The Minister may make regulations in relation to widower’s (non-contributory) pension and the regulations may apply (with or without modification), or make provisions corresponding (with or without modification) to, any provisions of, or regulations under, this 35 Act.”,
	(b) by the insertion after section 198A (inserted by paragraph (a) of this subsection) of the following section:
	“Deserted husband’s allowance.
	198B.—(1) A deserted husband’s allowance shall, subject to regulations, be paid to a man who—
	(a) has been deserted by his wife,
	(b) has at least one qualified child residing with him, and
	(c) satisfies the conditions as to means for entitlement to a widow’s (non-contributory) pension under Chapter 4 of Part III.
	(2) The rate of a deserted husband’s allowance payable to a person shall be the same as the rate of a widow’s (non-contributory) pension payable to a widow under Chapter 4 of Part III.
	(3) The Minister may make regulations in relation to deserted husband’s allowance and the regulations may, in particular and without prejudice to the...