Joe Walsh
Question:128 Mr. J. Walsh asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will have arrangements made to have payment of an old age contributory pension made to a person (details supplied) in County Dublin. [18869/96]
Written Answers. - Social Welfare Benefits.
One of the qualifying conditions for entitlement to old age contributory pension requires the applicant to have a yearly average of not less than 20 contributions paid or credited from 1953, or from the date of entry into insurance — whichever is the later — up to the end of the last complete contribution year before reaching pension age. Alternatively, an applicant may qualify if there is a yearly average of 48 contributions from 1979.
The person concerned has a total of 801 reckonable social insurance contributions in the 43 year period from 1953 to 1996. This gives her a yearly average of 18.6 contributions in this period which is not sufficient to qualify her for pension. She has a total of 699 contributions over the 17 year period from April 1979 and this gives her a yearly average of 41 in that period. This is insufficient to qualify her for pension under the alternative average test.
The person concerned may be entitled to an old age non-contributory pension, which is a means tested scheme. An application form and information leaflet have been issued to her. If she considers that she might be eligible, she should return the form duly completed, and her entitlement will be determined.
Joe Walsh
Question:129 Mr. J. Walsh asked the Minister for Social Welfare if a policy will be introduced for repayment of a lump sum to people who do not qualify for a pension, such as a person who worked for 22 years and is unable to draw benefit in view of the fact that her average number of stamps is too low and she has paid 217 stamps. [18870/96]
To qualify for an old age contributory pension, a person must have entered social insurance at least ten years before pension age. This condition has been a feature of the scheme since it was introduced in 1961, and its objective is to link entitlement to pension with a reasonable level of contributions to the social insurance fund.
All persons who enter social insurance for the first time after age 56 are entitled to a refund of the old age pension part of their contributions provided that they do not qualify for such a pension either contributory or non-contributory.
The 217 contributions mentioned by the Deputy in the question is equivalent to a total of just over four years paid contributions which is considerably less than the 22 years which is also mentioned in the question. If a person worked in insurable employment for 22 years they would be virtually certain to qualify for a minimum old age contributory pension. Accordingly, if the Deputy has a particular case in mind he may wish to give me the details so that it can be investigated to ensure that the claimant is in receipt of his-her full entitlements.