It is a requirement of the EU regulations governing the early retirement from farming schemes that any national retirement pension to which a scheme participant, and his or her spouse or partner in a joint management situation, becomes entitled must be deducted from the early retirement pension. This also means that any increases in national retirement pensions granted in the annual Budget Statement must be deducted from the early retirement pension.
As this requirement derives from EU Council regulations, it has been a feature of the early retirement from farming schemes since the start of the first scheme in 1994. There has been no recent change in the situation.
The assessment of eligibility for national retirement or State pensions, including those that are means tested, is the responsibility of the Department of Social and Family Affairs.