The Employer’s Contributions Re-imbursement Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Employer’s Contributions Re-imbursement Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 and shall come into operation on 6th April 1996.

(2) In these Regulations—

“the Order” means the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995;

“benefit week” means a period of 7 days (including Sundays) ending on the weekday corresponding to the particular weekday specified in a written notice last given to a person by the Department for the purposes of claiming unemployment benefit;

“breaking period” means—

(a)

any period of not more than 12 consecutive weeks in respect of which a person is not entitled to a qualifying benefit, or

(b)

a period in respect of which a person is summoned to jury service;

“carer” means a person of the description specified in paragraph 4(1) of Schedule 1(1) to the Income Support Regulations;

“contracted-out rate” means, in relation to Class 1 contributions payable in respect of earnings paid to or for the benefit of an earner in contracted-out employment, the percentage for the time being applying in section 37(1)(b) of the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993(2) for the calculation of the amount of those contributions;

“the Contributions Regulations” means the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1979(3);

“deductions certificate” means a certificate obtained from the Department in accordance with regulation 7;

“earnings” is to be construed in accordance with section 3 of the Benefits Act;

“employee” means a person who is—

(a)

an employed earner within the meaning of section 2(1)(a) of the Benefits Act, or

(b)

treated as such under section 116 of the Benefits Act or by regulations made under section 2(2), 117 or 119 of the Benefits Act, and

(c)

over the age of 16;

“employer” means a person who in relation to an employee is a secondary contributor within the meaning of section 7(1) of the Benefits Act or who is treated as such under section 116 of the Benefits Act or by regulations made under section 7(2), 117 or 119 of the Benefits Act;

“the Income Support Regulations” means the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(4);

“income tax period” has the meaning specified in Regulation 2(1) of Schedule 1(5) to the Contributions Regulations;

“lone parent” has the meaning specified in regulation 2(1) of the Income Support Regulations;

“mariner” has the meaning specified in regulation 84 of the Contributions Regulations;

“non-contracted-out rate” has the meaning specified in regulation 1(2)(6) of the Contributions Regulations;

“pensionable age” has the meaning given under the rules in paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995(7);

“qualifying benefit” means—

(a)

unemployment benefit;

(b)

in the case of a person—

(i)

who is treated as available for employment under regulation 9(8) of the Income Support Regulations, or

(ii)

to whom paragraph 1, 4 or 11 of Schedule 1 to the Income Support Regulations applies,

income support;

“training allowance” means an allowance (whether by way of periodical grants or otherwise) payable—

(a)

out of public funds by a government department or by or on behalf of the Department of Economic Development;

(b)

to a person for his maintenance or in respect of a member of his family, and

(c)

for the period, or part of the period, during which he is following a course of training or instruction provided by, or in pursuance of arrangements made with, a government department or approved by such department in relation to him or so provided or approved by or on behalf of the Department of Economic Development,

but it does not include an allowance paid by any government department to, or in respect of, a person by reason of the fact that he is following a course of full-time education, other than under provision or arrangements under sections 2 and 3 of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act (Northern Ireland) 1945(9) or section 1(1) of the Employment and Training Act (Northern Ireland) 1950(10), or is training as a teacher;

“the Unemployment Regulations” means the Social Security (Unemployment, Sickness and Invalidity Benefit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1984(11);

“voyage period” has the meaning specified in regulation 84 of the Contributions Regulations;

“week” means a period of 7 consecutive days;

“year”, except in regulation 5(4), means a period of 365 days or, where that period includes 29th February, 366 days.

(3) For the purposes of regulations 8 and 9 “the Department” shall include a reference to the Commissioners of Inland Revenue acting on its behalf.

(1)

Paragraph 4 was substituted by S.R. 1991 No. 338 and amended by S.R. 1992 No. 6

(2)

1993 c. 49

(3)

S.R. 1979 No. 186; relevant amending regulations are S.R. 1981 No. 30, S.R. 1982 No. 69, S.R. 1984 No. 43, S.R. 1985 Nos. 59 and 260, S.R. 1987 No. 143, S.R. 1988 No. 121, S.R. 1989 No. 384, S.R. 1990 No. 110, S.R. 1991 No. 310 and S.R. 1992 No. 280

(4)

S.R. 1987 No. 459; relevant amending regulations are S.R. 1991 No. 338, S.R. 1992 No. 6 and S.R. 1995 No. 67

(5)

Definition of “income tax period” was inserted by S.R. 1991 No. 310

(6)

Definition of “non-contracted-out rate” was amended by S.R. 1985 No. 260 and S.R. 1989 No. 384

(7)

S.I. 1995/3213 (N.I. 22)

(8)

Regulation 9 was amended by S.R. 1995 No. 67

(9)

1945 c. 6 (N.I.); sections 2 and 3 were amended by section 1 of the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act (Northern Ireland) 1960 (c. 4 (N.I.)) and Schedule 18 to the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/594 (N.I. 3))

(10)

1950 c. 29 (N.I.); subsection (1) was substituted by Article 3 of the Employment and Training (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 (S.I. 1988/1087 (N.I. 10))

(11)

S.R. 1984 No. 245; relevant amending regulations are S.R. 1989 No. 437