Social Welfare (Lone Parent's Allowance and Other Analogous Payments) Regulations, 1990.

• Statutory Instrument No.: 272/1990
• Date: 20 November 1990

S.I. No. 272 of 1990.
SOCIAL WELFARE (LONE PARENT'S ALLOWANCE AND OTHER ANALOGOUS PAYMENTS) REGULATIONS, 1990.
The Minister for Social Welfare, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 2 , 3 , 180 , 188 , 189 , 195 and 196 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981 (No. 1 of 1981) and by section 198F of that Act (inserted by section 12 of the Social Welfare Act, 1990 (No. 5 of 1990)), and after consultation with An Post, hereby makes the following Regulations:—
PART I General
	1 Short title.	1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Lone Parent's Allowance and Other Analogous Payments) Regulations, 1990.
	2 Interpretation generally.	2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"the Act" means the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1981 ;
"the Act of 1990" means the Social Welfare Act, 1990 ;
"allowance" means a lone parent's allowance, deserted wife's allowance or a pensioner's wife's allowance, as the case may be;
"allowance order" means an order for the payment through the post office of a weekly sum on account of a pension or an allowance;
"beneficiary" means a person entitled to a pension or an allowance, as the case may be;
"Chapter 5A of Part III of the Act" means Chapter 5A of Part III of the Act (inserted by section 12 of the Act of 1990);
"claimant" means a person who has made a claim for a pension or an allowance, as the case may be, or who could properly make such a claim if he were able to act;
"court" means a court to which either the Courts of Justice Acts, 1924 to 1961, or the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Acts, 1961 to 1988 apply;
"pension" means a widow's (non-contributory) pension or an orphan's (non-contributory) pension, as the case may be;
"prison" or "place of detention" means a place to which either the Prisons Acts, 1826 to 1977, or the Criminal Justice Act, 1960 (No. 27 of 1960) applies or, in relation to another State, any analogous place in which a person is detained by order of a responsible authority in that State;
"responsible authority" means any court, Commission or Tribunal properly constituted according to the laws of a State in which a person has been commited to a prison or to a place of detention;
"section 198C of the Act" and "section 198D of the Act" means section 198C and 198D respectively of the Act (inserted by section 12 of the Act of 1990).
	3 Commencement.	3. These Regulations shall come into operation—
( a ) on the 29th day of November, 1990 in the case of deserted wife's allowance, prisoner's wife's allowance and lone parent's allowance, other than lone parent's allowance payable in respect of a widow or a widower, and
( b ) on the 30th day of November, 1990 in the case of widow's (non-contributory) pension, orphan's (non-contributory) pension and lone parent's allowance payable in respect of a widow or a widower.
	4 Revocation of regulations.	4. The Regulations specified in Schedule B to these Regulations are hereby revoked to the extent specified in column 3 of that Schedule.
PART II Lone Parent's Allowance
CHAPTER 1 Separated Spouse
	5 Circumstances in which a person is to be regarded as being a separated spouse.	5. (1) A person is to be regarded for the purposes of Chapter 5A of Part III of the Act as being separated from his spouse if—
( a ) he and their children—
(i) are not being maintained by his spouse, or
(ii) are being maintained by his spouse, but at a rate per week which is less than the maximum scheduled rate of a lone parent's allowance appropriate to his family size, and
( b ) he and his spouse have lived apart from one another for a continuous period of at least three months immediately preceding the date of his claim for a lone parent's allowance.
(2) A separated spouse shall make and continue to make appropriate efforts, to the satisfaction of the Minister in the particular circumstances, to obtain maintenance from his spouse for himself and their children.
(3) In this article—
"spouse"—
( a ) in relation to a man who has been married more than once refers to his last wife only, and
( b ) in relation to a woman who has been married more than once refers to her last husband only;
"scheduled rate" means the rate of lone parent's allowance as set out at reference 5 in Part I of the Fourth Schedule to the Act (inserted by section 14 of the Act of 1990).
CHAPTER 2 Unmarried Person
	6 Circumstances in which a person is to be regarded as being an unmarried person.	6. (1) A person is to be regarded for the purposes of Chapter 5A of Part III of the Act as being an unmarried person if, not being a married person, he is the parent of a qualified child.
(2) For the purposes of this article a "parent" shall include, in the case of a child who has been adopted under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1988, or under any other form of adoption as the Minister considers appropriate in the circumstances, the adopter.
CHAPTER 3 Prisoner's Spouse
	7 Prisoner's spouse.	7. (1) A person is to be regarded for the purposes of Chapter 5A of Part III of the Act as being a prisoner's spouse if he is the spouse of a person who—
( a ) is in prison or place of detention, and
( b ) has for a period of not less than 6 calendar months immediately preceding the date of claim been in custody by order of court or a responsible authority, or is committed in custody by a court or a responsible authority for a period of not less than 6 calendar months.
(2) For the purposes of sub-article (1) of this article a certificate from a responsible authority shall be accepted as evidence of the duration of a period of custody.
	8 Disqualification.	8. (1) A person who qualified for a lone parent's allowance by virtue of being a prisoner's spouse shall, subject to section 198E of the Act, be disqualified for receiving such an allowance if and so long as his spouse is released from custody.
(2) For the purposes of this article release from custody shall not include temporary release from custody on compassionate grounds.
CHAPTER 4 Normal Residence
	9 Normal residence.	9. Subject to article 10 of these Regulations, a qualified child shall, for the purposes of the lone parent's allowance, be regarded as normally residing with a lone parent where—
( a ) he is resident with that lone parent, and
( b ) that lone parent has the main care and charge of him.
	10 Residence in an institution.	10. (1) A qualified child who is resident in an institution shall be regarded as normally residing with a lone parent where that parent contributes towards the cost of the child's maintenance in the institution and with whom the child would, under this Chapter, be regarded as normally residing if the child were not resident in an institution.
(2) A qualified child may, in such circumstances as the Minister considers appropriate, be regarded as normally residing with a lone parent who is resident in an institution.
	11 Interpretation.	11. In this Chapter "institution" means—
( a ) a hospital, convalescent home or home for persons suffering from physical or mental disability or accommodation ancillary thereto,
( b ) any other establishment providing residence, maintenance or care for the persons therein, or
( c ) any prison, place of detention or other establishment to which articles 28 and 29 of these Regulations applies.
PART III Analogous Payments
CHAPTER 1 Deserted Wife's Allowance
	12 Definition of desertion.	12. (1) A woman is to be regarded for the purposes of section 195 of the Act as having been deserted by her husband if—
( a ) her husband has of his own volition left her, and
( b ) she—
(i) is not being maintained by her husband, or
(ii) is being maintained by her husband, but at a rate per week which is less than the rate of deserted wife's allowance set out in column (2) of Part I of the Fourth Schedule to the Act, and
( c ) she and her husband have lived apart from one another for a continuous period of at least three months immediately preceding the date of her claim for deserted wife's allowance.
(2) A woman who has been deserted by her husband shall, for the purposes of section 195 of the Act, make and continue to make appropriate efforts, to the satisfaction of the Minister in the particular circumstances, to obtain maintenance from her husband.
	13 Means.	13. (1) The means of a claimant for or beneficiary of deserted wife's allowance shall be calculated in accordance with the rules for the time being contained in the Third Schedule to the Act as if her husband were dead and she were an applicant for a widow's (non-contributory) pension.
(2) The means of a claimant for or beneficiary of deserted wife's allowance shall not exceed the means which would entitle her, if her husband were dead, to a widow's (non-contributory) pension.
CHAPTER 2 Prisoner's Wife's Allowance
	14 Definition of prisoner.	14. (1) A man who is in a prison or place of detention shall be regarded as a prisoner for the purposes of section 196 of the Act if he has for a period of not less than 6 calendar months immediately preceding the date of claim been in custody by order of a court or a responsible authority, or is committed in custody by a court or a responsible authority for a period of not less than 6 calendar months.
(2) For the purposes of sub-article (1) of this article a certificate from a responsible authority shall be accepted as evidence of the duration of a period of custody.
	15 Means.	15. (1) The means of a claimant for or beneficiary of prisoner's wife's allowance shall be calculated in accordance with the rules for the time being contained in the Third Schedule to the Act as if her husband were dead and she were an applicant for a widow's (non-contributory) pension.
(2) The means of a claimant for or beneficiary of prisoner's wife's allowance shall...