The Social Security (Back to Work Bonus) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996

Couples who separate

9.—(1) Regulation 10 of the Back to Work Bonus Regulations (couples who separate) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (4).

(2) In paragraph (1) after the words “qualifying benefit” in the first place where they occur there shall be inserted “other than a contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance” and after the words “the other member of the couple,” in the first place where they occur there shall be inserted “in a case where he is entitled to a qualifying benefit within 12 weeks of the date of separation,”.

(3) After paragraph (1) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(1A) Where one or more members of a polygamous marriage separate and at the date of separation any one of them has days of entitlement to a qualifying benefit other than a contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance which count towards the waiting period, those days of entitlement which count, up to a maximum of 91 days, shall count towards a waiting period of any person who is or was a member of that marriage, where he is entitled to a qualifying benefit within 12 weeks of the date of separation, and shall be treated as days on which any person who is or was a member of that marriage was entitled to a qualifying benefit.”.

(4) In paragraph (2)—

(a) after the words “paragraph (1)” in each place where they occur there shall be inserted “or (1A)”, and

(b) after “regulation 6(2)” there shall be inserted “when he makes a claim for a qualifying benefit for the couple”.