Written answers

Wednesday, 31 October 2007

Department of Social Protection

International Agreements

9:00 pm

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 351: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the degree to which bilateral social welfare arrangements are in place with other jurisdictions; the extent of which expeditious process has been achieved; if it is intended to address particular areas which have not achieved the desired response levels; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26647/07]

Photo of Martin CullenMartin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland has social security agreements with Austria, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the USA and Switzerland. These agreements came into effect between 1989 and 1999, except for that with the UK which covers the Isle of Man and Channel Islands and came into effect on 1st October 2007. Ireland also has a bilateral understanding with Quebec since 1 October 1994. In the cases of Austria and Switzerland the bilateral agreements have limited application as the EU Regulations normally apply in these cases. Arrangements have been made for the signature today of an Agreement with the Republic of Korea and it is hoped to complete the necessary steps to bring it into effect before the end of next year.

All of these agreements are currently in operation and are generally working satisfactorily. The main purpose of the agreements is to protect the social security pension rights of workers who have worked both in Ireland and the other country to which the agreement applies. For all schemes, the time taken to process claims that fall to be examined under bilateral agreements is longer than that for standard Irish entitlements, reflecting the added complexity that arises in determining entitlements under these agreements. For instance, entitlement under the Irish contributions alone will be examined before recourse is made to the bilateral agreement.

Liaison procedures to ensure the secure transfer of personal data have been established with each country and are kept under constant review. Regular contact is made with the appropriate agencies to ensure the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of transfer of the information required to decide on claims. Where particular delays occur in the exchange of information, every effort is made to minimise processing times, while the overriding objective in dealing with these claims is to ensure that people receive their full and correct entitlements. Delays in processing applications do not ultimately result in any losses to pensioners in that those who qualify for payment have their claims backdated fully in accordance with the normal regulations for backdating pension claims.

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