Paragraph 13

In this Part—

• “adult dependant” means, in relation to a student, an adult person dependent on the student not being his child, his spouse or a person living with him as his spouse or his former spouse, subject however to sub-paragraphs (2) and (3);

• “child”, in relation to a student, includes a person whether under or over compulsory school age, an illegitimate child, a person adopted in pursuance of adoption proceedings, a step-child and any child whose guardian or custodian the student is and who is dependent on him;

• “dependant” means, in relation to a student, his dependent child, his spouse or an adult dependant, subject however to sub-paragraphs (2) and (3);

• “income” means income for the year from all sources less—

  1. (a)

     income tax, social security contributions and child benefit;

  2. (b)

     any attendance allowance under section 35 or mobility allowance under section 37A of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975^f1, or any mobility supplement provided for in an order made under section 12(1) of the Social Security (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1977^f2;

  3. (c)

     in the case of the student’s spouse, where she or the student makes any payment which was previously made by him in pursuance of an obligation incurred before the first year of his course—

     1. (i)

        if, in the opinion of the board, the obligation had been reasonably so incurred, an amount equal to the payment in question;

     2. (ii)

        if, in its opinion, only a lesser obligation could have been reasonably so incurred, such correspondingly lesser amount (if any) as appears to it appropriate; and

  4. (d)

     in the case of the student’s spouse, where a child in the care of the Department of Health and Social Services or a Health and Social Services Board is boarded out with her, any payment made to her in pursuance of section 114(1) of the Children and Young Persons Act (Northern Ireland) 1968^f3; and

  5. (e)

     in the case of the student’s spouse, any guardian’s allowance to which she is entitled under section 38 of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975^f4;

• “relevant award” means a statutory award in respect of a person’s attendance at a full-time course of higher education or a comparable course outside Northern Ireland;

• “spouse”, except in the definition of adult dependant, shall not include a student’s spouse if they have ceased ordinarily to live together whether or not an order for their separation has been made by any court.

A person, including the student’s spouse, shall not be treated as a dependant of the student during any period for which that person—

A person shall not be treated as a student’s adult dependant or as his dependent child—