Willie O'Dea
Question:464. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) was categorised as self-employed even though they have never been self-employed. [25125/24]
View answerTuesday, 11 June 2024
Questions (464)
Written answers
The person concerned applied for the Benefit Payment for 65 Year Olds (BP65) on 10/10/2023 and was disallowed on the grounds that he was still engaged in self-employment.
The person concerned was employed with earned income up to 2021 (9A contributions in 2021). He had 52 S contributions in 2021 (the Governing Contribution Year) which are solely as a result of his Approved Retirement Fund (ARF). As this ARF continues he is deemed to be still engaged in self-employment.
BP65 is based on Jobseekers Benefit (JB) / Jobseekers Benefit Self Employed legislation (JBSE). The person concerned does not have the required contributions to qualify under JB (does not have 39 A, H or P contributions) neither does he satisfy the JBSE eligibility conditions since one of the conditions for receipt of JBSE is that applicants must no longer be engaged in self-employment.
The person concerned did appeal the decision and a submission has been sent to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office by the Deciding Officer on 08/01/2024 and a decision is pending.
I trust this clarifies the position at this time.