Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 302: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the position in relation to the social welfare entitlements of returned development workers, including missionaries, and in particular, in relation to the definition of habitual residence in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7785/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Special arrangements for volunteer development workers have provided since 1983 for the award of credited social insurance contributions up to an aggregate of five years while they are outside the country on development activities. These credited contributions enable the workers to qualify for short-term benefits on their return from their overseas development work and it supports their accrued entitlement towards long-term benefits. In order to qualify for the credited contributions, a volunteer development worker must satisfy the following general and social insurance contribution criteria. He or she must be over 16 years of age. He or she must be resident in the State immediately prior to taking up the employment overseas, and must be employed under conditions of remuneration similar to those applied in the developing country.

In cases where the development worker has no previous PRSI contributions or no contributions paid or credited in the previous two years, arrangements have been put in place whereby Development Cooperation Ireland pay PRSI for the required number of contributions, up to a maximum of 52, to establish entitlement to short-term benefits for the volunteer workers. The credited contributions awarded to volunteer development workers are reckonable towards establishing entitlement to unemployment benefit, maternity benefit, disability benefit, health and safety benefit and treatment benefit. With regard to entitlement to old age pension, the credited contributions are counted towards calculating the yearly average that determines the rate at which the pension is paid. Given the nature of overseas work, provisions are in place to relax certain qualifying conditions normally required for entitlement to these benefits. This includes entitlement to the maximum full rate of unemployment or disability benefit where otherwise a reduced rate would apply for a period and special arrangements in relation to certification normally required of maternity benefit.

These arrangements can apply to the missionaries who are engaged in development work abroad, but in line with social insurance provisions, generally does not extend to their pastoral work. The habitual residence condition applies to means tested assistance payments and child benefit only. The condition tests the centre of interest of a person, the extent to which that person can be considered to be permanently resident in this State and his or her intention into the foreseeable future. The restriction is not based on citizenship, nationality, immigration status, occupation, or any other factor. In the absence of entitlement to a social insurance based payment, people may qualify for an assistance based payment once they meet the standard habitual residence criteria. The habitual residence condition would not normally be expected to affect missionaries or volunteer development workers who are returning to Ireland on a permanent basis.

Officials of my Department made a presentation to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs in November 2005 on the issue of pensions for missionaries. Following the presentation, a working group, which includes my Department, was established to examine issues relating to social protection coverage for missionaries, notably in regard to pension coverage.