Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 July 2018
2524. Deputy Seán Crowe asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to adjust the system that mitigates against an older person that may have had to work before they were 16 years of age or after their 66th birthday for reckonable contributions for a State pension. [33989/18]
View answerQualification for the State Pension (Contributory) is based on social insurance contributions, both paid and credited. As those under 16, and over 66 do not pay PRSI, any time spent working outside that timeframe cannot count towards this qualification.
From 2020 onwards we plan to have qualification for the contributory pension based on the Total Contributions Approach (TCA). The TCA ensures that the totality of a person’s social insurance contributions, as opposed to the timing of them, determines what their final pension outcome will be. The details on how the new approach will be implemented will be finalised later this year following a period of public consultation that is currently open.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
