Statutory Instruments

2000 No. 723

SOCIAL SECURITY

The Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 2) Regulations 2000

Made

11th March 2000

Laid before Parliament

13th March 2000

Coming into force

3rd April 2000

The Treasury, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State for Social Security, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 3(2) and (3), 122(1) and 175(1) to (3) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992(1), and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 2) Regulations 2000 and shall come into force on 3rd April 2000.

Interpretation

2. In these Regulations "the principal Regulations" means the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 1979(2).

Amendment of regulations 19 and 25 of the principal Regulations

3. In regulation 19(1) (payments to be disregarded) of the principal Regulations after sub-paragraph (zs)(3) there shall be added the following sub-paragraph-�

"(zt)a payment made to a person as a participant in a scheme such as is mentioned in section 60(1) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999(4)."

4. In regulation 25(2) (earnings for the purposes of certificates of exception) of the principal Regulations sub-paragraph (b)(5)-�

(a)the word "or" immediately after paragraph (i) shall be omitted;

(b)in paragraph (ii) for the words "under that scheme" there shall be substituted the words

"under that scheme, or-�

(iii)where the applicant, as a participant in a scheme such as is mentioned in section 60(1) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999, has received payments under that scheme,".

Bob Ainsworth

Greg Pope

Two of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury

9th March 2000

Alistair Darling

The Secretary of State for Social Security hereby concurs.

11th March 2000

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 1979 (S.I. 1979/591) ("the principal Regulations").

Regulation 1 provides for citation and commencement, and regulation 2 for interpretation.

Regulation 3 amends regulation 19(1) of the principal Regulations (payments to be disregarded) by adding a new sub-paragraph (zt). The new sub-paragraph relates to payments made under special schemes for claimants of jobseeker's allowance ("employment zone schemes"), being schemes such as are mentioned in section 60(1) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999 (c. 30). Such payments are to be disregarded for the purposes of earnings-related contributions.

Regulation 4 amends regulation 25(2)(b) of the principal Regulations (earnings for the purposes of certificates of exception). The effect of the amendment is that payments under employment zone schemes are to be disregarded in computing a self-employed earner's net earnings for the purposes of the exception from liability to pay Class 2 contributions on account of small earnings (see section 11(4) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 (c. 4)).

(1)

1992 c. 4. Section 3(2) was amended by paragraph 3 of Schedule 3 to the Social Security Contributions (Transfer of Functions, etc.) Act 1999 (c. 2) ("the Transfer Act"). Section 122(1) is cited because of the meaning ascribed to the word "prescribe". Subsection (1) of section 175 was amended, and subsection (1A) was inserted, by paragraph 29 of Schedule 3 to the Transfer Act.

(2)

S.I. 1979/591; the relevant amending instrument is S.I. 1999/2736.

(3)

Sub-paragraph (zs) was added by S.I. 1999/2736, regulation 3.

(4)

1999 c. 30.

(5)

Sub-paragraph (b) was substituted by S.I. 1999/2736, regulation 4.