Press release
Minister Doherty Signs Off on Regulations to Allow for Payments under Pensions Review
From Department of Social Protection
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Social Protection
Published on
Last updated on
First Payments to issue next week
The Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection is currently examining the pension payments of approximately 90,000 pensioners who reached pension age on or after the 1st September 2012 and were awarded less than the maximum rate of pension on post Budget 2012 rate-bands. These payments are being reviewed under a new Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to pension calculation which includes provision for homecaring periods. The Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection has already written to these pensioners to explain the process.
The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Regina Doherty T.D., has signed the necessary regulations which will allow increased payments to be made on foot of these reviews.
Arising from this, the department will start issuing the outcome of reviews and the first increased payments will start to issue next week. These increased payments will include arrears to the 30th March 2018 or the pensioner’s 66th birthday if later than that. Where pension rates do not increase as a result of this review, they will continue to be paid at their existing rate of entitlement.
Minister Doherty today said:
“I am delighted to report that all of the necessary legislative and system changes have now been made to allow these reviews to conclude and I am delighted to sign the necessary regulations to allow the increased payments to start being made shortly. These new measures will benefit many pensioners and even where pension rates do not increase, I want to assure everyone that no pensioner will be worse off as a result of this review.”
Given the number of reviews involved, the process is expected to take a number of months to complete. The Minister said:
“Even though there are tens of thousands of reviews to be conducted, the Department is committed to doing this as speedily as possible for all the pensioners involved and has recruited approximately 120 additional staff to carry out the necessary work.”
ENDS