National Insurance Act 1965

21 Exhaustion of and requalification for benefit.

(1) A person who, in respect of any period of interruption of employment, has been entitled to unemployment benefit for one hundred and eighty days shall not thereafter be entitled to that benefit for any day of unemployment (whether in the same or a subsequent period of interruption of employment) unless before that day he has requalified for benefit:

Provided that, in the case of a person who before exhausting his right to unemployment benefit under this subsection has qualified in accordance with regulations for additional days of unemployment benefit (depending on the contributions of the appropriate class paid by him and the unemployment benefit to which he has been entitled), this subsection shall apply with the substitution for the reference to one hundred and eighty days of a reference to such greater number of days as may be allowed by the regulations.

(2) A person who—

(a) in respect of the period between his entry into insurance and any day of incapacity for work has paid less than one hundred and fifty-six contributions of the appropriate class; and

(b) before that day has been entitled, in respect of any period of interruption of employment (whether including that day or not), to sickness benefit for three hundred and twelve days,

shall not be entitled to sickness benefit for that day unless since the last of the said three hundred and twelve days and before that day he has requalified for benefit.

(3) Where a person has exhausted his right to either of the said benefits—

(a) he shall requalify therefor when he has paid thirteen contributions of the appropriate class in respect of contribution weeks begun or ended since the last day for which he was entitled to that benefit;

(b) on his requalifying therefor, subsection (1) or (2), as the case may be, of this section shall again apply to him, but, in a case where the period of interruption of employment in which he exhausted his right to that benefit continues after his requalification, as if the part before and the part after his requalification were distinct periods of interruption of employment.

(4) Regulations may provide for treating a person for the purposes of this section as having been entitled to benefit for any day if he would have been so entitled but for any delay or failure to make or prosecute a claim or give a notice :

Provided that a person shall not be so treated where he shows that he did not intend, by failing to acquire or establish a right to benefit for that day, to avoid the necessity of requalifying for benefit under this section.