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Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2025

Type Act

Publication 2025-07-21

State In force

Source Irish Statute Book

Reform history JSON API

PART 1 Preliminary and General

1. Short title and construction

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2025.

(2) The Social Welfare Acts and this Act (other than sections 18 and 21) shall be construed together as one Act.

2. Definition

2. In this Act, “Principal Act” means the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005.

PART 2 Bereaved Partner’s Pension

3. Amendment of section 2 of Principal Act

3. Section 2 of the Principal Act is amended, in subsection (1), by the insertion of the following definitions:

“ ‘qualified cohabitant’ shall be construed in accordance with section 123A;

‘surviving qualified cohabitant’ means one qualified cohabitant of a couple who were both qualified cohabitants of each other and whose qualified cohabitant is deceased;”.

4. Death benefit for bereaved partners and increases for qualified children, etc.

4. The Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 81:

“81. (1) Subject to subsection (2), death benefit shall be payable to the bereaved partner of a deceased partner.

(2) Subject to sections 241(2) and 242, a bereaved partner whose claim for death benefit is based on being a surviving qualified cohabitant shall, regardless of the date of death of his or her deceased partner, be entitled to a pension under this section from 22 January 2024 or the date of death of the deceased partner, whichever is the later date.

(3) Death benefit shall be a pension at the weekly rate set out in column (2) of Part 1 of Schedule 2, and where the beneficiary has attained pensionable age and is living alone, that rate shall be increased by the amount set out in column (6) of that Part.

(4) A bereaved partner shall be disqualified for receiving a pension under subsection (3) if and so long as he or she is a cohabitant.

(5) A pension under subsection (3) shall cease as and from—

(a) the date of marriage or remarriage of the beneficiary,

(b) the date of entry by the beneficiary into a civil partnership or a new civil partnership, or

(6) The weekly rate of pension under subsection (3) shall be increased by the amount set out—

(a) in column (4) of Part 1 of Schedule 2 in respect of each qualified child who has not attained the age of 12 years who normally resides with the beneficiary,

(b) in column (5) of Part 1 of Schedule 2 in respect of each qualified child who has attained the age of 12 years who normally resides with the beneficiary,

(d) in column (8) of Part 1 of Schedule 2 where the beneficiary has attained pensionable age and is ordinarily resident on an island.

(7) (a) For the purpose of this section, and subject to any regulations under section 123(3), where the death of the deceased partner occurred on or after the date of the passing of the Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2025, a person shall not be considered a bereaved partner if the Minister is satisfied in all the circumstances that—

(i) in the case of a married couple, the spouses had lived apart and were not in an intimate and committed relationship for a period of at least 2 years immediately preceding the date of death of the deceased spouse, or

(ii) in the case of a civil partnership, the civil partners had lived apart and were not in an intimate and committed relationship for a period of at least 2 years immediately preceding the date of death of the deceased civil partner.

(b) For the purpose of paragraph (a)—

(i) spouses who live in the same dwelling as one another shall be considered as living apart from one another if the Minister is satisfied that, while so living in the same dwelling, the spouses do not live together as a couple in an intimate and committed relationship,

(ii) civil partners who live in the same dwelling as one another shall be considered as living apart from one another if the Minister is satisfied that, while so living in the same dwelling, the spouses do not live together as a couple in an intimate and committed relationship,

(iii) a relationship does not cease to be an intimate relationship merely because it is no longer sexual in nature.

(8) In this section, ‘bereaved partner’ and ‘deceased partner’ each have the meaning given to them in section 123.”.

5. Chapter 18 - Interpretation

5. The Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 123:

“123. (1) Subject to subsection (2), in this Chapter—

‘Act of 2025’ means the Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2025;

‘bereaved partner’ means a widow, a widower, a surviving civil partner or a surviving qualified cohabitant;

‘civil partner’—

(a) shall not include a person who would otherwise be a civil partner but for the fact that his or her civil partnership has been dissolved, being a dissolution that is recognised as valid in the State, and

(b) in relation to a surviving civil partner who has been party to a civil partnership more than once, refers only to the surviving civil partner’s last civil partner;

‘deceased partner’ means, in respect of a bereaved partner, the last deceased spouse, civil partner or qualified cohabitant, as the case may be, of the bereaved partner;

‘medical institution’ means—

(a) a hospital,

(b) a nursing home within the meaning of the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009, or

‘pension’ means a bereaved partner’s (contributory) pension payable in respect of a deceased partner;

‘relevant time’ means—

(a) where the contribution conditions are being satisfied on the bereaved partner’s insurance record—

(i) the date of death of the deceased partner,

(ii) where the bereaved partner attained pensionable age before the date of death of the deceased partner, the date on which he or she attained that age, or

(iii) where the bereaved partner is a person born on or after 1 January 1958, who has attained pensionable age and has paid qualifying contributions or voluntary contributions after attaining pensionable age and before the date of death of the deceased partner, the date upon which the last such qualifying contribution or voluntary contribution was paid,

(b) where the contribution conditions are being satisfied on the deceased partner’s insurance record—

(i) the date on which the deceased partner attained pensionable age,

(ii) where the deceased partner died before attaining pensionable age, the date of his or her death, or

(iii) where the deceased partner was a person born on or after 1 January 1958, who had attained pensionable age and had paid qualifying contributions or voluntary contributions after attaining pensionable age, the date upon which the last such qualifying contribution or voluntary contribution was paid;

‘spouse’, in relation to a widow or widower who has been married more than once, refers only to the widow’s or widower’s last spouse;

‘widow’ shall not include a woman who would otherwise be a widow but for the fact that her marriage has been dissolved, being a dissolution that is recognised as valid in the State;

‘widower’ shall not include a man who would otherwise be a widower but for the fact that his marriage has been dissolved, being a dissolution that is recognised as valid in the State;

‘yearly average’ means the average per contribution year of contribution weeks in respect of which the bereaved partner or deceased partner, as the case may be, has qualifying contributions, voluntary contributions or credited contributions in the appropriate period specified in section 125(1)(b) and where the average so calculated is a fraction of a whole number consisting of one-half or more it shall be rounded up to the nearest whole number and where it is a fraction of less than one-half it shall be rounded down to the nearest whole number.

(2) (a) For the purposes of this Chapter, Chapter 21 and Chapter 6 of Part 3 and subject to any regulations under subsection (3), where the death of the deceased partner occurred on or after the date of the passing of the Act of 2025, a person shall not be considered a bereaved partner if the Minister is satisfied in all the circumstances that—

(b) For the purpose of paragraph (a)—

(iii) a relationship does not cease to be an intimate relationship merely because it is no longer sexual in nature.

(3) The Minister may by regulations—

(a) specify the circumstances (including residence in a medical institution) in which, and the periods during which (including periods longer than 2 years), spouses who are in an intimate and committed relationship but are living apart may, for the purpose of subsection (2)(a)(i) and section 81, be deemed to be periods when they are living together, and

(b) specify the circumstances (including residence in a medical institution) in which, and the periods during which (including periods longer than 2 years), civil partners who are in an intimate and committed relationship but are living apart may, for the purpose of subsection (2)(a)(ii) and section 81, be deemed to be periods when they are living together.”.

6. Qualified cohabitant

6. The Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 123:

“123A. (1) For the purposes of this Act, and subject to subsections (2) to (4), a person shall be a qualified cohabitant if—

(a) the person is one of 2 adults (whether of the same or the opposite sex) who are not related to each other within the prohibited degrees of relationship or married to each other or civil partners of each other and who have been living together in an intimate and committed relationship as a couple—

(i) for a period of 2 years or more, in a case where there are one or more children of the relationship, and

(ii) for a period of 5 years or more, in any other case,

(b) the person—

(i) is a person referred to in paragraph (a) on the date of death of his or her deceased partner, or

(ii) is a person referred to in paragraph (a) whose relationship ended not more than 2 years before the date of death of his or her deceased partner.

(2) For the purpose of this Act—

(a) 2 adults are within a prohibited degree of relationship if they would be prohibited from marrying each other in the State, or they are in a relationship referred to in the Third Schedule to the Civil Registration Act 2004,

(b) qualified cohabitants who live in the same dwelling as one another shall be considered as living apart from one another if the Minister is satisfied that, while so living in the same dwelling, the qualified cohabitants do not live together as a couple in an intimate and committed relationship,

(d) subject to any regulations under subsection (4)(b), a person shall not be a qualified cohabitant if he or she had been living apart from the person in relation to whom a claim is based for more than 2 years before that person’s death, and

(e) a reference to a ‘qualified cohabitant’ in relation to a person who has been a qualified cohabitant more than once, refers only to the last qualified cohabitant of the person concerned.

(3) In determining whether or not a person is a qualified cohabitant, the Minister shall take into account all the circumstances of the relationship in question and in particular shall have regard to the following:

(a) the duration of the relationship;

(b) the basis on which the couple lived together;

(d) the degree and nature of any financial arrangements between the adults including any joint purchase of an estate or interest in land or joint acquisition of personal property;

(e) whether there are one or more children of the relationship;

(f) any payment under this Act payable to one or both of the adults and the conditions in relation to the payment;

(g) the degree to which the adults present themselves to others as a couple;

(h) whether one of the adults cares for and supports the children of the other.

(4) (a) The Minister may, for the purposes of section 81, this Chapter, Chapter 21 of Part 2 and Chapter 6 of Part 3, by regulations, make provision in relation to the documentary proof, including information or specific documentation to be provided by a person in support of an application, where any of the matters specified in subsection (3) are relied on for a claim based on the person being a qualified cohabitant and, notwithstanding the generality of the foregoing, any such regulations may provide for—

(i) any additional evidence that may be offered by a person to demonstrate the nature, extent and duration of the relationship,

(ii) such other matters as the Minister considers appropriate for the purposes of section 81, this Chapter, Chapter 21 of Part 2 and Chapter 6 of Part 3,

(b) The Minister may by regulations specify the circumstances (including residence in a medical institution) in which, and periods during which (including periods longer than 2 years), qualified cohabitants who are in an intimate and committed relationship but are living apart may, for the purpose of subsection (2)(d), be deemed to be periods when they are living together.

(5) The question as to whether a person is a qualified cohabitant, there being no legal impediment, in accordance with subsection (2), to such a determination, is a question that may be decided by a deciding officer having taken into account the matters specified in subsection (3), including any information or documentation required in accordance with any regulations made under subsection (4).

(6) In this section, ‘child of the relationship’ means any child of whom both of the qualified cohabitants are the parents.”.

7. Repeal of section 124 of Principal Act

7. Section 124, insofar as it is still in operation, of the Principal Act is repealed.

8. Entitlement to bereaved partner’s pension

8. The Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following section:

“124A. (1) Subject to this Act, a bereaved partner shall be entitled to a pension—

(a) where the contribution conditions set out in section 125(1) are satisfied on either the insurance record of the bereaved partner or that of his or her deceased partner,

(b) where the deceased partner was entitled to a State pension (contributory) which included an increase in respect of the bereaved partner by virtue of section 112(1) in respect of a period ending on the deceased partner’s death, or

(c) where the deceased partner would have been entitled to a State pension (contributory) at an increased weekly rate by virtue of section 112(1), in the deceased partner’s own right, in respect of a period ending on his or her death, but for the receipt by the bereaved partner of a State pension (non-contributory), a blind pension or a carer’s allowance.

(2) Subject to sections 241(2) and 242, a bereaved partner whose claim is based on being a surviving qualified cohabitant shall, regardless of the date of death of his or her deceased partner, be entitled to a pension under this section from 22 January 2024 or the date of death of the deceased partner, whichever is the later date.

(3) A bereaved partner shall be disqualified for receiving a pension under this section if and so long as he or she is a cohabitant.

(4) A pension under this section shall cease as and from—

(a) the date of marriage or remarriage of the beneficiary,

(b) the date of entry by the beneficiary into a civil partnership or a new civil partnership, or

9. Operation of section 124A and repeal of section 124-savers

9. The Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 124A:

“124B. (1) Notwithstanding anything in section 124A, a person who—

(a) by virtue of being a woman who would otherwise have been a widow but for the fact that her marriage was dissolved, being a dissolution that was recognised as valid in the State—

(i) was in receipt of a widow’s (contributory) pension on the passing of the Act of 2025, or

(ii) would have been entitled to a widow’s (contributory) pension immediately before the passing of the Act of 2025 by virtue of the date of death of her husband preceding such passing,

(b) by virtue of being a man who would otherwise have been a widower but for the fact that his marriage was dissolved, being a dissolution that was recognised as valid in the State—

(i) was in receipt of a widower’s (contributory) pension on the passing of the Act of 2025, or

(ii) would have been entitled to a widower’s (contributory) pension immediately before the passing of the Act of 2025 by virtue of the date of death of his wife preceding such passing,

(c) by virtue of being a person who would have been a surviving civil partner but for the fact that his or her civil partnership was dissolved, being a dissolution that was recognised as valid in the State, where he or she—

(i) was in receipt of a surviving civil partner’s (contributory) pension on the passing of the Act of 2025, or

(ii) would have been entitled to a surviving civil partner’s (contributory) pension immediately before the passing of the Act of 2025 by virtue of the date of death of his or her civil partner preceding such passing,

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This document does not substitute the official text published in the Irish Statute Book. We accept no responsibility for any inaccuracies arising from the transcription of the original into this format.