Explanatory note

These Regulations further amend the Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004 (“the principal Regulations”), which provide for remission and payment of certain charges which would otherwise be payable under the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972 and for the payment by the Department of travelling expenses incurred in attending a hospital.

Regulation 2 amends regulation 2 of the principal Regulations to make provisions for the insertion of several definitions.

Regulation 3 amends regulation 5 of the principal Regulations to increase the income level at which recipients of tax credits are entitled to a full remission and payment of Health Service Travel Expenses and a remission of Health Service charges.

Regulation 4 amends regulation 8 of the principal Regulations to extend to 5 years the time period for which a notice of entitlement to remission of Health Service charges and the payment of Health Service Travel Expenses is valid where issued to a single person aged 65 or over, or to one of a couple where one partner is aged 60 or over and the other partner is aged 65 or over, where that person does not have certain types of income or a dependant child or young person in his household. It also provides that a person issued with a 5-year notice of entitlement must notify the Department of any changes in the composition of his family or household during the life of the notice and enables the Department to withdraw or vary the notice if the person no longer fulfils the necessary criteria to be issued with that notice.

Regulation 5 amends Schedule 1 to the principal Regulations to increase the capital limits for entitlement under these regulations for people living in care and makes some small transitional amendments.