SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES

NATIONAL INSURANCE (BENEFITS) (ADMENDMENT) REGULATIONS,

2002

ARANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

REGULATION

1.   Citation and Commencement

2.   Amendment of regulation 2 of No.13 of 1994

3.   Amendment of regulation 23

4.   Amendment of Regulation 35

5.   Insertion of regulation 37A

6.   Amendment of regulation 39

7.   Insertion of regulation 39A

8.   Amendment of regulation 51

9.   Amendment to the Third Schedule

10.  Validation

SMNT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES

STATUTORY RULES AND ORDERS

2002 NO.33

(Gazetted                2002)

Citation and Commencement

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by sections 28 and 53 of the National Insurance Act, Cap. 229 the

Minister makes the following Regulations:

NATIONAL INSURANCE (BENEFITS) (AMENDMENT) REGULATIONS, 2002

1.              (1) These Regulations maybe cited as the National Insurance (Benefits) (Amendment)

Regulations, 2002.

(2)           These Regulations shall come into force on the 1^st day of July 2002, except regulation 2 (a)

which shall come into force on the 1^st day of January 2003.

Amendment of regulation 2of No. 13 of 1994 (Click here for 2005 Amendment)

2.              Regulation 2 of the National Insurance (Benefits) Regulations, in these Regulations referred to as

the "principal Regulations", is amended as follows:

(a) by repealing in the definition of “insurable earnings" "$600.00 weekly or $2,600.00 monthly"

and substituting the following:

"$870.00 weekly or $3,770.00 monthly";

(b) by repealing the full stop at the end of the definition of "medical practitioner" and substituting a

semi colon; and

(c) by inserting after the definition of "medical practitioner" the following definitions:

"Non-contributory Assistance Age Pension" means a pension granted pursuant to regulation

37A;

'Non-contributory Assistance Age Pensioner" means a beneficiary under regulation 37A".

Amendment of regulation 23 (Click here for 2005 Amendment)

3.              Regulation 23 of the principal Regulations is amended in paragraph (I) by repealing three

hundred dollars and substituting the following:

"five hundred dollars".

Amendment of regulation 35 (Click here for 2005 Amendment)

4.              Regulation 35 of the principal Regulations is amended in paragraph (2) by repealing "fifty dollars"

and substituting the following:

"fifty-five dollars".

Inserting of regulation 37A (Click here for 2005 Amendment)

5.              The principal Regulations are amended by inserting after regulation 37 the following new

regulation:

"Non contributory Assistance Age Pension"

37A.   (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of this Part a pension of twenty

dollars per week to be known as the Non-Contributory Assistance Age Pension

may be granted to persons who are residents of Saint Vincent and the

Grenadines who satisfy the following conditions:

(a)   were of the age of 57 years or older on the 5^th of

January, 1987;

(b)   are not engaged in remunerative employment

(c)   (c)         do not have income equivalent to the Non-

contributory Assistance   Age Pension benefit or a regular

income from any other source;

(d)   are not in receipt of any pension income from the National Insurance Scheme;

(e)   (e)         were actively employed  for  a significant

number of continuous  years prior to the ₅1h day of

January, 1987;

(f)   satisfies the following residency requirement:

(i)             is at the date of claim a resident of Saint Vincent

and the Grenadines;

(ii)           has  been  so resident for at least five of the last

eight years;

(iii)          has  been  a resident of Saint Vincent and the

Grenadines for at least twenty-five years since his

twentieth birthday.

(2)  No contribution is required from a Non-contributory

Assistance Age Pension beneficiary"

Amendment of regulation 39

6.              Regulation 39 of the principal Regulations is amended by repealing "Funeral" at the beginning of

the regulation and substituting the following:

"Subject to regulation 39A funeral".

Insertion of regulation 39A

7.              The principal Regulations are amended by inserting after regulation 39 the following new

regulation:

"

39A. Notwithstanding the provisions of regulation 39, funeral grant may be awarded on

the death of a Non-contributory Assistance Age Pensioner or the spouse or child of a

Non-contributory Assistance Age Pensioner as prescribed in the Third Schedule"

Amendment of regulation 51 (Click here for 2005 Amendment)

8.              Regulation 51 of the principal Regulations is amended by inserting after subsection (2) the

following new subsection:

"(3) Pensions awarded prior to the 1" day of January, 2002 in accordance with regulations 28, 33,

37 and 42 are increased three per centum for every year (or part of a year) from the 31st day of

December, 1999 or the date of the award, whichever is the later, up to a maximum increase of six

per centum."

Amendment to the Third Schedule (Click here for 2005 Amendment)

9. The Third Schedule to the principal Regulations is repealed and the following substituted:

"THIRD SCHEDULE

[regulations 39A &41]

FUNERAL GRANTS

A.    Non-contributory Assistance Age Pensioner The amount of a funeral grant shall be

(a)   with respect to the death of a Non-contributory Assistance Age Pensioner

$1,800.00;

(b)   with respect to the death of the spouse of a Non-contributory Assistance Age

Pensioner $900.00;

(c)   with respect to the death of a dependant child of a Non-contributory Assistance

Age Pensioner, based on the age of the child at death;

B.    General

The amount of a funeral grant shall be

(a)   with respect to the death of an insured person, an invalidity pensioner, or

an age pensioner $3,600.00;

(b)   with respect to the death of the spouse of an insured person, an invalidity

pensioner, or an age pensioner $1,800.00;

(c)   with respect to the death of a dependent child of an insured person, an

invalidity pensioner or an age pensioner based on the age of the child at death;

Validation

10.       (1) In 1997 and 1999 amendments to the principal Regulations, making increases in benefits to beneficiaries, were effected in principle but were never formally signed and Gazetted, the National Insurance Scheme has distributed benefits in accordance with those amendments and this Regulation now validates the amendments made in 1997 and 1999.

(2)      All monies received by the National Insurance Scheme and distributed to beneficiaries on behalf of the National Insurance Scheme under the principal Regulations from the lst day of January 1997 and the 315 day of July, 1999 to the l~' day of July, 2002 are declared to have been validly, properly and lawfully received and distributed and all persons acting on behalf of the National Insurance Scheme in receiving monies and distributing benefits under the principal Regulations are freed, acquited, discharged and indemnified as well against the Queen '5 Most Excellent Majesty, Her Heirs and Successors as against all other persons from proceedings of any kind in respect of or consequent on receiving monies and distributing benefits on behalf of the National Insurance Scheme under the principal Regulations.

Dated the day of 2002.