Social Security Fraud Act 2001

• “ benefit offence ” means— any post-commencement offence in connection with a claim for a disqualifying benefit;any post-commencement offence in connection with the receipt or payment of any amount by way of such a benefit;any post-commencement offence committed for the purpose of facilitating the commission (whether or not by the same person) of a benefit offence;any post-commencement offence consisting in an attempt or conspiracy to commit a benefit offence;

• “ disqualifying event ” means the conviction falling within subsection (1)(a), the agreement falling within subsection (1)(b) or the caution falling within subsection (1)(c);

• “ post-commencement offence ” means any criminal offence committed after the commencement of this section.

• (14) In this section and section 7 “ relevant offence ” means—

• (a) in England and Wales, the common law offence of conspiracy to defraud, or

• (b) a prescribed offence which, in the offender's case, is committed in such circumstances as may be prescribed, and which, on conviction—

• (i) is found by the court to relate to an overpayment (as defined in section 115A(8) of the Administration Act) of at least £50,000,

• (ii) is punished by a custodial sentence of at least one year (including a suspended sentence as defined in section 189(7)(b) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003), or

• (iii) is found by the court to have been committed over a period of at least two years.

• (15) The Secretary of State may by order amend subsection (11A)(a), (b) or (c), or (14)(b)(i), (ii) or (iii) to substitute a different period or amount for that for the time being specified there.

6C

• (1) Where—

• (a) the conviction of any person of any offence is taken into account for the purposes of the application of section 6B in relation to that person, and

• (b) that conviction is subsequently quashed,

all such payments and other adjustments shall be made as would be necessary if no restriction had been imposed by or under section 6B that could not have been imposed if the conviction had not taken place.

• (2) Where, after the agreement of any person (“P”) to pay a penalty under the appropriate penalty provision is taken into account for the purposes of the application of section 6B in relation to that person—

• (a) P's agreement to pay the penalty is withdrawn under subsection (5) of the appropriate penalty provision, or

• (b) it is decided on an appeal or in accordance with regulations under the Social Security Act 1998 or the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 that any overpayment made to which the agreement relates is not recoverable or due,

all such payments and other adjustments shall be made as would be necessary if no restriction had been imposed by or under section 6B that could not have been imposed if P had not agreed to pay the penalty.

• (3) Where, after the agreement (“ the old agreement ”) of any person (“P”) to pay a penalty under the appropriate penalty provision is taken into account for the purposes of the application of section 6B in relation to P, the amount of any overpayment made to which the penalty relates is revised on an appeal or in accordance with regulations under the Social Security Act 1998 or the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1998—

• (a) section 6B shall cease to apply by virtue of the old agreement, and

• (b) subsection (4) shall apply.

• (4) Where this subsection applies—

• (a) if there is a new disqualifying event consisting of—

• (i) P's agreement to pay a penalty under the appropriate penalty provision in relation to the revised overpayment, or

• (ii) P being cautioned in relation to the offence to which the old agreement relates,

the disqualification period relating to the new disqualifying event shall be reduced by the number of days in so much of the disqualification period relating to the old agreement as had expired when section 6B ceased to apply by virtue of the old agreement, and

• (b) in any other case, all such payments and other adjustments shall be made as would be necessary if no restriction had been imposed by or under section 6B that could not have been imposed if P had not agreed to pay the penalty.

• (5) For the purposes of section 6B—

• (a) the date of a person's conviction in any proceedings of a benefit offence shall be taken to be the date on which the person was found guilty of that offence in those proceedings (whenever the person was sentenced) or in the case mentioned in paragraph (b)(ii) the date of the order for absolute discharge; and

• (b) references to a conviction include references to—

• (i) a conviction in relation to which the court makes an order for absolute or conditional discharge ...,

• (ii) an order for absolute discharge made by a court of summary jurisdiction in Scotland under section 246(3) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 without proceeding to a conviction, and

• (iii) a conviction in Northern Ireland.

• (6) In this section “ the appropriate penalty provision ” has the meaning given by section 6B(2)(a).

Loss of benefit for second or subsequent conviction of benefit offence

Delegation of functions

Offence of failing to notify a change of circumstances

Colluding employers

Interpretation of sections 6A to 12

Effect of offence on joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance

Delegation of functions

Offence of failing to notify a change of circumstances

Time limit for proceedings in Scotland

Effect of offence on joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance

Offence of failing to notify a change of circumstances

Meaning of “the Administration Act”

Effect of offence on benefits for members of offender’s family

Interpretation of sections 6A to 12

Delegation of functions

Offence of failing to notify a change of circumstances

Time limit for proceedings in Scotland

Code of practice about use of information powers

Loss of benefit in case of conviction, penalty or caution for benefit offence

Section 6B: supplementary provisions

Loss of benefit for repeated benefit fraud

Effect of offence on joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance

Effect of offence on benefits for members of offender’s family

Power to supplement and mitigate loss of benefit provisions

Interpretation of sections 6A to 12

Delegation of functions

Offence of failing to notify a change of circumstances

Time limit for proceedings in Scotland

Loss of benefit in case of conviction, penalty or caution for benefit offence

Section 6B: supplementary provisions

Loss of benefit for repeated benefit fraud

Effect of offence on joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance

Effect of offence on benefits for members of offender’s family

Power to supplement and mitigate loss of benefit provisions

Interpretation of sections 6A to 12

Delegation of functions

Offence of failing to notify a change of circumstances

Time limit for proceedings in Scotland