The Social Security and Child Support (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999

Late application for a revision

4.—(1) The time limit for making an application for a revision specified in regulation 3(1) or (3) may be extended where the conditions specified in the following provisions of this regulation are satisfied.

(2) An application for an extension of time shall be made by the claimant or a person acting on his behalf.

(3) An application shall—

(a) contain particulars of the grounds on which the extension of time is sought and shall contain sufficient details of the decision which it is sought to have revised to enable that decision to be identified; and

(b) be made within 13 months of the date of notification.

(4) An application for an extension of time shall not be granted unless the applicant satisfies the Department that—

(a) it is reasonable to grant the application;

(b) the application for revision has merit; and

(c) special circumstances are relevant to the application and as a result of those special circumstances it was not practicable for the application to be made within the time limit specified in regulation 3.

(5) In determining whether it is reasonable to grant an application, the Department shall have regard to the principle that the greater the amount of time that has elapsed between the expiry of the time specified in regulation 3(1) and (3) for applying for a revision and the making of the application for an extension of time, the more compelling should be the special circumstances on which the application is based.

(6) In determining whether it is reasonable to grant an application for an extension of time, no account shall be taken of the following—

(a) that the applicant or any person acting for him was unaware of or misunderstood the law applicable to his case (including ignorance or misunderstanding of the time limits imposed by these Regulations); or

(b) that a Commissioner or a court has taken a different view of the law from that previously understood and applied.

(7) An application under this regulation for an extension of time which has been refused may not be renewed.

(8) In this regulation “Commissioner” includes a Commissioner within the meaning of section 39(1) of the Social Security Act 1998(1).

(1)

1998 c. 14