Regulation 2 Interpretation

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires,—

• “the Act” means the Social Security Act 1975;

• F1“the 2012 Act” means the Welfare Reform Act 2012;

• F2“benefit”—

  1. (a)

     includes—

     1. (i)

        a contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance;

     2. (ii)

        a contributory employment and support allowance;

  2. (b)

     does not include—

     1. (i)

        an income-based jobseeker’s allowance;

     2. (ii)

        an income-related employment and support allowance;

     3. (iii)

        a state pension under Part 1 of the Pensions Act 2014;

• F3...

• ...

• F4...

• F5“the Contributions and Benefits Act” means the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992;

• F6“contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance” means an allowance under the Jobseekers Act 1995 as amended by the provisions of Part 1 of Schedule 14 to the 2012 Act that remove references to an income-based allowance, and a contribution-based allowance under the Jobseekers Act 1995 as that Act has effect apart from those provisions;

• F7“contributory employment and support allowance” means an allowance under Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act as amended by the provisions of Schedule 3, and Part 1 of Schedule 14, to the 2012 Act that remove references to an income-related allowance, and a contributory allowance under Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act as that Part has effect apart from those provisions;

• “credits” and “a credit” shall be construed in accordance with regulation 3;

• F8...

• ...

• ...

• F9“income-based jobseeker’s allowance”has the same meaning as in the Jobseekers Act 1995;

• F10“income-related employment and support allowance” means an income-related allowance under Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act (employment and support allowance);

• “jobseeker’s allowance”means an allowance payable under Part I of the Jobseekers Act 1995;

• ...

• ...

• F11“reckonable year” means a year for which the relevant earnings factor of the contributor concerned was sufficient to satisfy—

  1. (a)

     in relation to short-term incapacity benefit, widowed mother’s allowance, F12widowed parent’s allowance, F13... widow’s pension or Category A or Category B retirement pension, paragraph (b) of the second contribution condition specified in relation to that benefit in Schedule 3 to the Contributions and Benefits Act; F14...

  2. (b)

     in relation to contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance, the additional condition specified in section 2(3) of the Jobseekers Act 1995; F15or

  3. (c)

     in relation to a contributory employment and support allowance, the condition specified in paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 1 to the Welfare Reform Act (conditions relating to national insurance).

• F16“relevant benefit year” has the same meaning as it has—

  1. (a)

     in relation to short-term incapacity benefit, in paragraph 2(6)(b) of Schedule 3 to the Contributions and Benefits Act; F17...

  2. (b)

     in relation to contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance, in section 2(4)(b) of the Jobseekers Act 1995; F18and

  3. (c)

     in relation to a contributory employment and support allowance, in paragraph 3(1)(f) of Schedule 1 to the Welfare Reform Act (conditions relating to national insurance);

• “relevant earnings factor”, F19in relation to any benefit, means—

  1. (a)

     F20if the benefit is a contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance or if the contributions relevant to the benefit under section 21 of the Contributions and Benefits Act are Class 1 contributions, the earnings factor derived from earnings upon which primary Class 1 contributions have been paid or treated as paid, or credited earnings;

  2. (b)

     if the contributions relevant to that benefit under F21that section are Class 1 and Class 2 contributions, the earnings factor or the aggregate of the earnings factors derived from—

     1. (i)

        earnings primary Class 1 contributions have been paid or treated as paid, or credited earnings, and

     2. (ii)

        Class 3 contributions;

  1. (c)

     if the contributions relevant to that benefit under that section are Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3 contributions, the earnings factor or the aggregate of the earnings factors derived from—

     1. (i)

        earnings upon which primary contributions have been paid or treated as paid, or credited earnings,

     2. (ii)

        Class 2 contributions, and

     3. (iii)

        Class 3 contributions paid or credited

• F22“relevant past year” means the last complete year before the beginning of the relevant benefit year;

• F23“universal credit” means universal credit under Part 1 of the 2012 Act;

• F24“the Welfare Reform Act” means the Welfare Reform Act 2007;

• F25“widowed parent’s allowance” means an allowance referred to in section 39A of the Contributions and Benefits Act;

• F26“working tax credit” means a working tax credit under section 10 of the Tax Credits Act 2002

• F27“year” means tax year;

and other expressions have the same meanings as in the Act.

The rules for the construction of Acts of Parliament contained in the Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the purposes of the interpretation of these regulations as they apply for the purposes of the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.

Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in these regulations—

Nothing in these regulations shall be construed as entitling any person to be credited with contributions for the purposes of any benefit for a day, period or event occurring before 6th April 1975.