Calculation of net earnings of employed earners: pensioners
39.—(1) For the purposes of paragraph 54 (calculation of income on a weekly basis), the earnings of an applicant derived or likely to be derived from employment as an employed earner to be taken into account must, subject to paragraph 37(4) (calculation of weekly income: pensioners) and Schedule 4, be that applicant’s net earnings.
(2) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) net earnings must, except where sub-paragraph (5) applies, be calculated by taking into account the gross earnings of the applicant from that employment over the assessment period, less—
(a)any amount deducted from those earnings by way of—
(i)income tax;
(ii)primary Class 1 contributions under the SSCBA;
(b)one-half of any sum paid by the applicant by way of a contribution towards an occupational pension scheme;
(c)one-half of the amount calculated in accordance with sub-paragraph (4) in respect of any qualifying contribution payable by the applicant; and
(d)where those earnings include a payment which is payable under any enactment having effect in Northern Ireland and which corresponds to statutory sick pay, statutory maternity pay, ordinary or additional statutory paternity pay or statutory adoption pay, any amount deducted from those earnings by way of any contributions which correspond to primary Class 1 contributions under the Act.
(3) In this paragraph “qualifying contribution” means any sum which is payable periodically as a contribution towards a personal pension scheme.
(4) The amount in respect of any qualifying contribution is to be calculated by multiplying the daily amount of the qualifying contribution by the number equal to the number of days in the assessment period; and for the purposes of this paragraph the daily amount of the qualifying contribution is to be determined—
(a)where the qualifying contribution is payable monthly, by multiplying the amount of the qualifying contribution by 12 and dividing the product by 365;
(b)in any other case, by dividing the amount of the qualifying contribution by the number equal to the number of days in the period to which the qualifying contribution relates.
(5) Where the earnings of an applicant are determined under paragraph 37(2)(b) (calculation of weekly income: pensioners) that applicant’s net earnings are to be calculated by taking into account those earnings over the assessment period, less—
(a)an amount in respect of income tax equivalent to an amount calculated by applying to those earnings the basic rate of tax applicable to the assessment period less only the personal relief to which the applicant is entitled under sections 35 to 37 of the Income Tax Act 2007(1) (personal allowances) as is appropriate to the applicant’s circumstances but, if the assessment period is less than a year, the earnings to which the basic rate of tax is to be applied and the amount of the personal relief deductible under this sub-paragraph is to be calculated on a pro rata basis;
(b)an amount equivalent to the amount of the primary Class 1 contributions that would be payable by the applicant under the SSCBA in respect of those earnings if such contributions were payable; and
(c)one-half of any sum which would be payable by the applicant by way of a contribution towards an occupational or personal pension scheme, if the earnings so estimated were actual earnings.
2007 c. 3: the heading and subsection (1) of section 35 were amended by section 4 of the Finance Act 2012 (c. 14) (“2012 Act”); subsections (2) and (4) were inserted by section 4 of the Finance Act 2009 (c. 10). In section 36, the heading and subsection (2) were amended by, subsection (1) substituted by, and subsection (2A) inserted by section 4 of the 2012 Act; subsection (2) has also been amended by S.I. 2011/2926 and section 4 of the Finance Act 2009. In section 37, the heading and subsection (2) were amended by, subsection (1) substituted by, and subsection (2A) inserted by section 4 of the 2012 Act; subsection (2) has also been amended by S.I. 2011/2926 and section 4 of the Finance Act 2009.