The Universal Credit and Employment and Support Allowance (Claimant Commitment Exceptions) (Amendment) Regulations 2022

Made: 20th January 2022

Laid before Parliament: 24th January 2022

Coming into force: 15th February 2022

In accordance with section 173(1)(b) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992[^f00003], the Social Security Advisory Committee has agreed that the proposals in respect of these Regulations should not be referred to it.

Citation, commencement and extent

1

• (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Universal Credit and Employment and Support Allowance (Claimant Commitment Exceptions) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 and come into force on 15th February 2022.

• (2) Any amendment made by these Regulations has the same extent as the provision amended.

Amendment to the Universal Credit Regulations 2013

2

In regulation 16 of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013 (claimant commitment-exceptions)[^f00004]—

• (a) regulation 16 shall stand as paragraph (1);

• (b) after paragraph (1), insert—

(2) A person does not have to meet the basic condition to have accepted a claimant commitment if the person is terminally ill.

Amendment to the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2013

3

In regulation 45 of the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2013 (claimant commitment - exceptions)[^f00005]—

• (a) regulation 45 shall stand as paragraph (1);

• (b) after paragraph (1), insert—

(2) A claimant may be entitled to an employment and support allowance without having accepted a claimant commitment if the claimant is terminally ill.

Signed

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Chloe Smith — Minister of State — Department for Work and Pensions — 20th January 2022

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations amend the Universal Credit Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/376) (“the UC Regulations”) and the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/379) (“the ESA Regulations”) by setting out an additional exception to the requirement to accept a claimant commitment which is a condition of entitlement.

Regulation 16 of the UC Regulations and regulation 45 of the ESA Regulations contain two exceptions to the requirement to accept a claimant commitment, that is, where the Secretary of State considers that a person lacks capacity to accept a claimant commitment and where there are exceptional circumstances in which it would be unreasonable to expect a person to accept a claimant commitment. These Regulations provide an additional exception which exempts terminally ill claimants from the requirement to accept a claimant commitment. “Terminally ill” is defined in regulation 2 of the UC Regulations and regulation 2 of the ESA Regulations and means suffering from a progressive disease where death in consequence of that disease can reasonably be expected within 6 months.

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, public or voluntary sectors is foreseen.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: 2007 c. 5. Section 24 is cited for the meaning of the words “prescribed” and “regulations”. Paragraph 4A of Schedule 2 was inserted by section 54(1) and (6) of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (c. 5).

[^f00002]: 2012 c. 5. Section 40 is cited for the meaning of the word “prescribed”.

[^f00003]: 1992 c. 5.

[^f00004]: S.I. 2013/376.

[^f00005]: S.I. 2013/379.