Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 section 144

Total amount payable to a couple

Section 144 limits the total social welfare payments that can be made to a couple where both partners are claiming jobseeker's allowance, pre-retirement allowance, or a combination of these with other benefits.

• Where both partners claim jobseeker's allowance or pre-retirement allowance, their combined payment cannot exceed what one claimant alone would receive, and each partner receives half.
• Where one partner receives a State benefit or pension and the other receives jobseeker's allowance, the combined total is capped at the higher of the two individual entitlements, with the jobseeker's allowance reduced if necessary.
• Where one partner receives the new jobseeker's pay-related benefit and the other receives jobseeker's allowance, the combined payment must not fall below what a single jobseeker's allowance claimant would receive.
• "Couple" means married partners living together, civil partners living together, or cohabitants; references to jobseeker's allowance include pre-retirement allowance.