The Tax Credits (Prescribed Period of Awards) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2002

Statutory Instruments

2002 No. 1339

SOCIAL SECURITY, NORTHERN IRELAND

TAXES, NORTHERN IRELAND

The Tax Credits (Prescribed Period of Awards) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2002

Made

14th May 2002

Laid before Parliament

14th May 2002

Coming into force

4th June 2002

The Treasury, in exercise of the powers conferred upon them by sections 127(3), 128(6), 133(1) and 171(1) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992(1), and section 2(1)(a) of, and paragraphs 3(c) and (d) and 22(a) of Schedule 2 to, the Tax Credits Act 1999(2), hereby make the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Tax Credits (Prescribed Period of Awards) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2002 and shall come into force on 4th June 2002.

Prescribed Period of Award

2.—(1) Where an award becomes payable on or after 4th June 2002, the period that is prescribed for which that award shall be payable is the period that begins on the date on which it becomes payable and ends on 7th April 2003.

This is subject to the provisions of Part VI of the Family Credit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(3) and Part VII of the Disability Working Allowance (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992(4) (changes of circumstances resulting in award ceasing to have effect from an earlier date).

(2) In paragraph (1) “award” means an award of working families' tax credit or, as the case may be, disabled person’s tax credit (construing those terms in accordance with section 1(1) of the Tax Credits Act 1999).

Anne McGuire

Tony McNulty

Two of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty’s Treasury

14th May 2002

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations provide that where an award of working families' tax credit or disabled person’s tax credit becomes payable on or after 4th June 2002, the period for which that award shall be payable is the period that begins on the date on which it becomes payable and ends on 7th April 2003, rather than the period of 26 weeks specified in sections 127(3) and 128(6) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992.

The purpose of these Regulations is to facilitate the transition to the new tax credits to be introduced from April 2003 under the Tax Credits Bill currently before Parliament.

(1)

1992 c. 7. Sections 127 and 128 were amended by paragraph 4(g) and (h) of Schedule 1 to the Tax Credits Act 1999 (c. 10). Section 133(1) is cited because of the meaning it ascribes to the word “prescribed”.

(2)

1999 c. 10.

(3)

S.R. 1987 No. 463.

(4)

S.R. 1992 No. 78.