Social Welfare Act 2019

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR No. 34/2019
• Year: 2019

Number 34 of 2019
Social Welfare Act 2019
CONTENTS
PART 1
Preliminary and General
1. Short title, construction and commencement
PART 2
Amendments to Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005
2. Definition
3. Jobseeker’s benefit - conditions for receipt
4. Jobseeker’s benefit - duration of payment
5. Jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed)
6. Jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) - consequential amendments
7. Appeals to Circuit Court
PART 3
Amendments to Taxes Consolidation Act 1997
8. Definition
9. Amendment of section 3 of Act of 1997
10. Amendment of section 126 of Act of 1997
PART 4
Miscellaneous
11. Report on social protection supports for one parent families
SCHEDULE
Amendments consequential on Jobseeker’s Benefit (Self-Employed)
Acts Referred to
Social Welfare Acts
Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 (No. 26)
Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (No. 39)
Number 34 of 2019
Social Welfare Act 2019
An Act to amend and extend the Social Welfare Acts; to amend the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997; and to provide for related matters.
[24th October , 2019]
Be it enacted by the Oireachtas as follows:
PART 1 Preliminary and General
		Short title, construction and commencement
1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Social Welfare Act 2019.
	(2) The Social Welfare Acts and this Act (other than Part 3 ) shall be construed together as one Act.
	(3) This Act (other than Part 3 ) shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision, and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.
	(4) Part 3 shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister for Finance may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision, and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.
PART 2 Amendments to Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005
		Definition
2. In this Part, “Principal Act” means the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005.
		Jobseeker’s benefit - conditions for receipt
3. Section 64 of the Principal Act is amended in subsection (1), by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (a):
	“(a) (i) has employment contributions or optional contributions paid in respect of not less than 104 contribution weeks in the period between his or her entry into insurance and the day for which benefit is claimed, or
	(ii) has self-employment contributions paid in respect of not less than 156 contribution weeks in the period between his or her entry into insurance and the day for which benefit is claimed,”.
		Jobseeker’s benefit - duration of payment
4. Section 67 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (8):
	“(8A) For the purposes of this section, where a person receives jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) in respect of any week of unemployment, and that person is entitled to jobseeker’s benefit in respect of that week, any day of unemployment in that week shall be treated as though it were a day in respect of which jobseeker’s benefit was paid.”.
		Jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed)
5. The Principal Act is amended in Part 2 by the insertion of the following Chapter after Chapter 12:
	“CHAPTER 12A
	Jobseeker’s Benefit (Self-Employed)
	Interpretation
	68B. In this Chapter, save where the context otherwise requires, “payment week” means the period commencing on the Thursday of one week and ending on the Wednesday of the following week.
	Entitlement to benefit and qualifying conditions
	68C. (1) Subject to this Act, a person shall be entitled to jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) in respect of any payment week where—
	(a) he or she is under pensionable age in the week for which the benefit is claimed,
	(b) he or she satisfies the contribution conditions in section 68D,
	(c) subject to section 68K(3), he or she is not engaged in self-employment,
	(d) he or she is capable of work,
	(e) he or she is genuinely seeking, but is unable to obtain, employment suitable for him or her having regard to his or her age, physique, education, normal occupation, place of residence and family circumstances, and
	(f) he or she proves unemployment in the prescribed manner.
	(2) For the purposes of this Chapter, the Minister shall make regulations specifying the circumstances in which a person is or is not to be regarded as being available for and genuinely seeking employment and these circumstances may vary in relation to—
	(a) the person’s previous work experience,
	(b) the period for which he or she has been unemployed, and
	(c) the prevailing employment conditions.
	(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1)(f), for the purposes of that subsection a person may prove unemployment and may make a declaration for that purpose, by means of an electronic communication, in the prescribed manner.
	(4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, where a person has 4 days, whether consecutive or not, of insurable employment in any payment week (other than any day when the person is employed as a retained fire fighter) he or she shall not be entitled to jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) in respect of that week.
	Conditions for receipt
	68D. (1) The contribution conditions for jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) are that the claimant—
	(a) (i) has employment contributions or optional contributions paid in respect of not less than 104 contribution weeks in the period between his or her entry into insurance and the week for which benefit is claimed, or
	(ii) has self-employment contributions paid in respect of not less than 156 contribution weeks in the period between his or her entry into insurance and the week for which benefit is claimed,
	(b) has self-employment contributions paid in respect of not less than 52 contribution weeks in the second last complete contribution year before the beginning of the benefit year in which the claim is made, and
	(c) has reckonable weekly income in excess of €300 in the governing contribution year or has average reckonable weekly income specified in paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (4) in that year.
	(2) Regulations may provide for modifications of the contribution conditions set out in subsection (1).
	(3) Subsection (1)(c) shall not apply in the case of a claim for jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) made by a person in the benefit year in which that person, having been a volunteer development worker, returns to the State from a developing country or in the next 2 succeeding benefit years.
	(4) For the purposes of the requirements of subsection (1)(c), a claimant—
	(a) has average reckonable weekly income in the governing contribution year which does not exceed €149.99,
	(b) has average reckonable weekly income in the governing contribution year which exceeds €149.99 but does not exceed €219.99, or
	(c) has average reckonable weekly income in the governing contribution year which exceeds €219.99 but does not exceed €299.99.
	(5) For the purposes of subsection (1)(c), the reckonable weekly income shall be calculated as the total reckonable income in the governing contribution year divided by the number of qualifying contributions in that governing contribution year.
	Rate of benefit
	68E. (1) Subject to this Act, the weekly rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) shall be as set out in column (2) of Part 1 of Schedule 2.
	(2) Subject to this Act, and notwithstanding subsection (1), in the case of a person to whom subsection (2) or (6) of section 68I or subsection (1) or (4) of section 68J refers, the weekly rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) shall be reduced and accordingly shall be the weekly rate set out in column (2) of Part 1 of Schedule 2 which shall be reduced in each week by €44.
	(3) The weekly rate of payment of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed), as provided for under this Chapter, shall be reduced by 20 per cent for each day of insurable employment the person has in the payment week.
	(4) The total amount of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) payable under this section in any payment week shall be rounded up to the nearest 10 cent where it is a multiple of 5 cent but not also a multiple of 10 cent and shall be rounded to the nearest 10 cent where it is not a multiple of 5 cent or 10 cent.
	Rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) relating to certain average reckonable weekly earnings and certain periods
	68F. (1) Subject to this Act, in the case of—
	(a) a person with average reckonable weekly income specified in section 68D(4)(a), the weekly rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) shall be €91. 10,
	(b) a person with average reckonable weekly income specified in section 68D(4)(b), the weekly rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) shall be €131. 00, and
	(c) a person with average reckonable weekly income specified in section 68D(4)(c), the weekly rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) shall be €159. 00.
	(2) Subject to this Act, notwithstanding subsection (1), in the case of a person to whom subsection (2) or (5) of section 68I or subsection (1) or (3) of section 68J refers, the weekly rate of jobseeker’s benefit (self-employed) shall be reduced and accordingly—
	(a) in the case of a person referred to in subsection (1)(a), the weekly rate shall be €71.70,
	(b) in the case of a person referred to in subsection (1)(b), the weekly rate shall be €102.60, and
	(c) in the case of a person referred to in subsection (1)(c), the weekly rate shall be €124.00.
	Increases for qualified adult and qualified children
	68G. (1) Subject to subsection (2)...