The Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2014

Sanctions: transition from old style JSAU.K.

32.—(1) This regulation applies where—

(a)an award of universal credit is made to a claimant who was previously entitled to old style JSA (“the JSA award”);

(b)on the relevant date, payments in respect of the JSA award were reduced under section 19 (as it applied either before or after substitution by the Act M1) or section 19A of the Jobseekers Act 1995 (“the 1995 Act”), or under regulation 69B of the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations 1996 M2 (“the 1996 Regulations”); and

(c)if the JSA award was made to a joint-claim couple within the meaning of the 1995 Act and the reduction related to—

(i)in the case of a reduction under section 19 as it applied before substitution by the Act, circumstances relating to only one member of the couple; or,

(ii)in the case of a reduction under section 19 as it applied after substitution by the Act, a sanctionable failure by only one member of the couple,

the award of universal credit was made to that person.

(2) In this regulation, the “relevant date” means—

(a)where the claimant was not entitled to old style JSA on the date on which the claim for universal credit was made or treated as made, the date on which the JSA award terminated;

(b)where the claimant is not a new claimant partner and was entitled to old style JSA on the date on which the claim for universal credit was made, that date;

(c)where the claimant is a new claimant partner and was entitled to old style JSA on the date on which the claim for universal credit was treated as made, that date.

(3) Where this regulation applies—

(a)the circumstances or failure which led to reduction of the JSA award (in either case, “the JSA failure”) is to be treated, for the purposes of the Universal Credit Regulations, as—

(i)a failure which is sanctionable under section 26 of the Act, where the reduction was under section 19 of the 1995 Act; or

(ii)a failure which is sanctionable under section 27 of the Act, where the reduction was under section 19A of the 1995 Act or regulation 69B of the 1996 Regulations;

(b)the award of universal credit is to be reduced in relation to the JSA failure, in accordance with the provisions of this regulation and Chapter 2 of Part 8 of the Universal Credit Regulations (sanctions), as modified by this regulation; and

(c)the reduction is to be treated, for the purposes of the Universal Credit Regulations, as a reduction under section 26 or, as the case may be, section 27 of the Act.

(4) The reduction period for the purposes of the Universal Credit Regulations is a period of the number of days which is equivalent to the length of the period of reduction which is applicable to the person under regulation 69, 69A or 69B of the 1996 Regulations, minus—

(a)the number of days (if any) in that period in respect of which the amount of old style JSA was reduced; and

(b)if the award of old style JSA terminated before the first date of entitlement to universal credit in connection with the current award, the number of days (if any) in the period after termination of that award, before the start of the universal credit award.

(5) Accordingly, regulation 101 of the Universal Credit Regulations applies in relation to the JSA failure as if, in paragraphs (1) and (3), for “in accordance with regulations 102 to 105”, there were substituted “ in accordance with regulation 32 of the Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2014 ”.

(6) Where the JSA award was made to a joint-claim couple within the meaning of the 1995 Act and the JSA failure related to only one member of the couple, the daily reduction rate for the purposes of the Universal Credit Regulations M3 is the amount calculated in accordance with regulation 70(3) of the 1996 Regulations M4 in respect of the JSA award, divided by seven and rounded down to the nearest 10 pence, unless regulation 111(2) or (3) of the Universal Credit Regulations (daily reduction rate) applies.

(7) Where the daily reduction rate is to be determined in accordance with paragraph (6), regulation 111(1) of the Universal Credit Regulations applies in relation to the JSA failure as if, for the words from “an amount equal to” to the end there were substituted the words “ an amount determined in accordance with regulation 32 of the Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2014 ”.

(8) For the purposes of this regulation, a determination that payments in respect of the JSA award are to be reduced under regulation 69, 69A or 69B of the 1996 Regulations is to be taken into account even if the JSA award subsequently terminated (in so far as it was an award of income-based jobseeker's allowance) on a date before the date on which that determination was made, by virtue of an order made under section 150(3) of the Act.