Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for this question in particular as it is an issue on which we exchange correspondence weekly. In addition to the general EU regulations governing interoperability of social welfare between the 28 member states of the EU, Ireland has concluded ten bilateral agreements on social security with jurisdictions including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Quebec, Switzerland, USA, South Korea and Japan. The agreements are limited to certain social welfare benefits and are mostly pension related.

In considering the need to negotiate a bilateral social security agreement, priority is given to countries with which there are the highest levels of worker migration and countries in which Ireland has greatest economic interest. The nature and scope of the social security system in operation in that country is also another significant consideration. The main purpose of these agreements is to protect the pension rights of people who have worked and paid social security contributions in Ireland and the countries with which Ireland has such agreements. This is achieved by allowing reckonable social security contributions paid in one or more of these countries to be aggregated with Irish full-rate social insurance contributions for the purposes of qualifying for certain contributory payments in Ireland or in these countries. Liaison arrangements are in place with the relevant authorities of the countries with which Ireland has social security agreements for the transmission of, or request for, information in order to compile the full extent of a claimant’s insurance record. These agreements are underpinned by legislation.

If the Deputy is referring to a particular case, he might give me the details and we will see if we can resolve any existing issue.

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