The Age-Related Payments Regulations 2005

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations make provision for the payment of a one-off lump sum of £200 or £100 to households with occupants who have attained the age of 65, and £50 to households with occupants who have attained the age of 70 (if they are also in receipt of state pension credit guarantee credit), no later than the end of the week commencing Monday 19th September 2005 and who are ordinarily resident in Great Britain on any day in that week.

Part 1 (regulation 1) defines certain terms used in the Regulations, including “qualifying individual” and “the relevant week”.

Part 2 (regulations 2 and 3) provides for payment to persons over the age of 65.

• Regulation 2 sets out the conditions under which a single person and a member of a couple is eligible for a £200, or a £100, payment.

• Regulation 3 varies entitlement for qualifying individuals who are part of couples or share their household with another qualifying individual, and transfers entitlement to a payment from one member of a couple to the other in order to ensure that the payment is made to the member of the couple who is to receive the Winter Fuel Payment.

Part 3 (regulations 4 and 5) provides for payments to persons in receipt of guarantee credit.

• Regulation 4 sets out the conditions under which a single person and couples on state pension credit guarantee credit are eligible for a £50 payment.

• Regulation 5 transfers entitlement to a payment from one member of a couple to the other in order to ensure that the payment is made to the member of the couple who is to receive the Winter Fuel Payment. It also provides that a person who has been in a care home during the relevant week, and for whom the care home was their ordinary place of residence for the 12 weeks prior to the relevant week, is not entitled to a £50 payment.

Part 4 (regulations 6 to 9) provides for disqualifications, procedure and miscellaneous matters.

• Regulation 6 disqualifies a person from receiving a payment if he has been receiving free in-patient hospital treatment continuously for 52 weeks including the relevant week, is being held in custody throughout the relevant week or is subject to immigration control throughout that week.

• Regulation 7 enables the Secretary of State to make payments without a claim as well as allowing for a claim to be made by a qualifying individual who has not automatically received a payment before 31st December 2005. It also applies the provisions of the Social Security Act 1998 (c. 14) concerning the revision and appeal of decisions.

• Regulation 8 provides that payments made under these Regulations shall not be taken into account in assessing a person’s liability to tax, entitlement to benefit or entitlement to a tax credit.

• Regulation 9 applies section 71 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c. 5) (which deals with the recovery of overpayments) and regulations made under it to payments under these Regulations in the same way as they apply to the benefits listed in that section.

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