Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 120: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if a person who took up work in class A insurable employment after a career in the public service, but who reached 66 years without accumulating the required 260 stamps for eligibility for a pension, is entitled to claim a rebate of the contributions due to the fact that legislation prevented them from becoming eligible. [28529/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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In order to qualify for an old age contributory pension a person must have entered social insurance at least ten years before reaching pension age, have a minimum number of paid full-rate employment contributions on his or her record, currently 260, and have a yearly average of at least ten contributions paid or credited from 1953, when the unified system of social insurance came into effect, or the date of entry into social insurance, if later. A yearly average of 48 contributions is required for a full pension.

Contributions paid at PRSI classes A, E, F, G H, N and S are considered to be full rate contributions for the purposes of entitlement to old age contributory pension.

A person may also qualify for mixed insurance pro rata pension if he or she has a mixture of full-rate contributions and contributions paid at the modified, public service, rate.

Where entitlement to a pension has not been established, regulations provide for a refund of the pensions portion of the employment contribution to be paid in specified circumstances. The Social Welfare (Consolidated Contributions and Insurability) Regulations 1996, as amended, provide for a refund of the pensions element of PRSI, 1.06%, to insured persons who entered into insurable employment after they had attained the age of 56 years and who have entitlement to neither old age contributory pension nor old age non-contributory pension.