Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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Question 383: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the way the change to civil partnership legislation has affected the means testing of people for job seeker's allowance who are cohabiting with their partners who are in employment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25258/12]

Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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Question 384: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she has had any communication with the Department of Finance over the anomaly whereby people who are cohabiting are means tested for job seeker's allowance but are not allowed share tax credits under the rules of the Revenue Commissioners; her plans to end this anomaly; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25259/12]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 383 and 384 together.

The social welfare and tax systems have evolved over time and in response to a variety of factors, including Constitutional imperatives as interpreted by the Courts, changing social trends and EU Directives. Up to the end of December 2010, the social welfare code recognised the couple status of opposite sex co-habiting couples and treated married and opposite sex co-habiting couples in a similar manner for means testing and other purposes. The EEC Equality Directive 79/9 and the subsequent Supreme Court case (Hyland v Minister for Social Welfare, 1989 ) led to this change in the treatment of non-married cohabiting couples in the social welfare code. The Court ruled that it was unconstitutional for the total income a married couple received in social welfare benefits to be less than the couple would have received if they were unmarried and cohabiting.

Following the enactment of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act, 2010, further changes in the definition of a couple for social welfare purposes were introduced in the Social Welfare and Pensions Act, 2010. These changes amended the social welfare code to recognise the introduction of civil partnership. In addition, the code was also amended to treat cohabiting same sex couples in the same way as cohabiting opposite sex couples. This means that, for means testing purposes for jobseeker's allowance and other means tested schemes, married couples, civil partners and same and opposite sex cohabiting couples are treated in the same manner.

The income tax arrangements and subsequent legislation for married couples, civil partners and cohabiting couples generally are a matter for the Minister for Finance. I have not been in contact with that Minister on the income tax treatment of these couples.