Draft Winter Heating Assistance (Pension Age) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 and policy note

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations make amendments to the Winter Heating Assistance (Pension Age) (Scotland) Regulations 2024 (‘the principal Regulations’).

Regulation 3 amends regulation 2 (interpretation) of the principal Regulations to insert a definition of a “mixed age couple” which inserted regulation 13A (applications) provides is one of the groups who, when in receipt of universal credit, may make an application for Pension Age Winter Heating Payment (“PAWHP”) in accordance with section 38 of the 2018 Act.

Regulation 4 amends regulation 5 (eligibility rules) of the principal Regulations to reflect the expanded eligibility rules for pensioners who are not entitled to a relevant benefit on a day in the qualifying week in accordance with inserted regulation 7A (no relevant benefit condition).

Regulation 5 inserts regulation 7A (no relevant benefit condition) as a new eligibility rule for determining entitlement to PAWHP for pensioners who are not entitled to a relevant benefit on a day in the qualifying week. It also inserts regulation 7 afresh so that it continues include the expired regulation 7(b) (which expired on 1 April 2025 by operation of regulation 17 (expiry) of the principal Regulations). The expired regulation 7(b) will now be in the new regulation 7(1)(b) and will continue to ensure that pensioners who are habitually resident in one of the countries in the schedule to whom regulation 8(b) applies, and who can demonstrate entitlement on a day in the qualifying week to an equivalent benefit to the relevant benefits, can also be entitled to payment of PAWHP and may export PAWHP to their country of habitual residence.

Regulation 6 expands the residence conditions at regulation 8 (residence condition) to clarify that the United Kingdom must be the competent state for the payment of old-age benefits, which includes PAWHP, in order that pensioners who are habitually resident in one of the countries in the schedule and who are covered by at least one of the agreements or conventions at regulation 8(1)(b)(ii), can export PAWHP. Regulation 6 also amends regulation 8 (residence condition) of the principal Regulations so that pensioners who were resident in Scotland on the first day of the qualifying week but, by the last day of the qualifying week, are resident outwith Scotland, are treated as not meeting the ordinary residence test condition at regulation 8(1)(a).

Regulation 7 amends regulation 9(1)(c) (individuals not entitled to Pension Age Winter Heating Payment) of the principal Regulations to ensure that the existing exclusion to PAWHP entitlement in respect of pensioners who are entitled to relevant benefits and living in a care home or independent hospital both for the 12 weeks leading up to, and throughout, the qualifying week, is not extended to pensioners who are not on relevant benefits who are more likely to be self-funding.

Regulation 8 amends regulation 10 (amount of Pension Age Winter Heating Payment) of the principal Regulations so that in addition to the rules providing for the amount of PAWHP which depends on entitlement to a relevant benefit, the age of the individual and who they live with, there are added rules which provide a universal PAWHP payment to pensioners not entitled to relevant benefit on a day in the qualifying week.

Regulation 9 inserts a new Part 5A (applications) comprised of regulation 13A (applications) and regulation 13B (application window). The inserted regulation 13A (applications) allows individuals in a variety of circumstances to submit an application in accordance with section 38 of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018. The inserted regulation 13B (application window) limits the window for applications until the 31 March following the qualifying week, unless the Scottish Ministers consider a late applicant has a good reason for submitting their application after 31 March. Regulation 13B also provides that this application window of 31 March does not apply where the Scottish Ministers are under a duty to carry out a determination without application in accordance with regulation 11 (determination of entitlement to Pension Age Winter Heating Payment without receiving an application) of the principal Regulations nor where a late applicant becomes entitled to either pension credit or universal credit retrospectively to include the qualifying week or where the exclusions from benefits at section 115 of Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 cease to apply to the individual with effect from a day in the qualifying week.

Regulation 10 amends regulation 14 (periods in respect of a re-determination request) to increase the period for requesting a re-determination of entitlement to Pension Age Winter Heating Payment under section 41 of the 2018 Act (right to request re-determination) from 31 days to 42 days, aligning it with all other forms of assistance provided for under the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018.

Regulation 11 omits Part 8 (expiry).

Regulation 12 inserts as the schedule to the Winter Heating Assistance (Pension Age) (Scotland) Regulations 2024 a schedule of countries for the purpose of regulation 8(1)(b)(i).