Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 22 Feb 1996

Vol. 462 No. 1

Written Answers. - Pension Entitlement.

Edward Nealon

Question:

53 Mr. Nealon asked the Minister for Social Welfare the reason a person who has been paying PRSI for the self employed, but who has not sufficient payments for a contributory pension on reaching pension age must go through the formalities of applying for a non-contributory old age pension before the 53 per cent pension element of the PRSI contributions are returned to him even when a person knows that he or she has no chance of qualifying for the non-contributory old age pension; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4037/96]

Minister for Social Welfare (Proinsias De Rossa)

Social welfare regulations, provide for the refund of the old age pension element of self-employment contributions paid by a person who entered social insurance for the first time after attaining the age of 56 years. However, under the regulations no contribution shall be returned in respect of an insured person who is entitled to, or in receipt of, a retirement pension, an old age (contributory) pension or an old age (non-contributory) pension. Before a refund can be made in any particular case, it is necessary to establish if the person has an entitlement to any of these pensions.

My Department will, of course, have available to it all the information necessary to decide if the person is entitled to a retirement pension or an old age (contributory) pension based on social insurance contributions. However, it will not be in a position to know if the person would have an entitlement to an old age (non-contributory) pension which is based on a means test. The only practical way of establishing this is for a person to apply for the pension. While the formality of completing a claim form may appear unnecessary to people who will, themselves, know that they have no chance of qualifying for a non-contributory pension, nonetheless, it is necessary for the Department to satisfy itself that entitlement to a pension does not exist before a claim for a refund can be entertained.