3.—(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1 of the Administration Act (necessity of claims for entitlement to benefit), the appropriate authority may determine that, with respect to any person who has been awarded either housing benefit or community charge benefits for a benefit period which includes 31st March 1993, it shall not be a condition of entitlement to council tax benefit under the 1992 Regulations that a claim for that benefit has been made; and where it so determines the provisions of the Administration Act and the Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 and regulations made thereunder shall apply, subject to the following provisions of this Order, as if a claim for that benefit had been duly made by or on behalf of a person to whom this paragraph applies in respect of a period beginning on the relevant date.
(2) Where by virtue of paragraph (1) a person’s entitlement to council tax benefit falls to be determined as if a claim for it has been made, his entitlement may be determined at an earlier date than the relevant date if that person is entitled to either housing benefit or community charge benefit at that earlier date; and any entitlement to council tax benefit shall be determined in accordance with the 1992 Regulations as if the whole of those Regulations were in force.
(3) A determination which is made awarding council tax benefit under the 1992 Regulations in accordance with paragraph (2)—
(a)may award benefit from the relevant date if it appears probable to the appropriate authority that the conditions for entitlement will be satisfied from that date;
(b)shall be subject to the conditions for entitlement being satisfied on the relevant date; and
(c)may be reviewed if any question arises as to the satisfaction of those conditions.