Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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308. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will confirm the conditions under which a person currently in receipt of the transition pension may take up employment or be involved in the setting up of a company; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16554/14]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2011 provides that State pension age will be increased gradually to 68 years. State pension (transition) available at 65 was abolished in January 2014, thereby standardising State pension age for all at 66 years. State pension age will increase further to 67 in 2021, and to 68 in 2028.

The State pension (transition) was introduced in 1970 when it was known as the retirement pension. It was designed to bridge the gap between the standard social welfare pension age, which at that time was 70 years of age, and retirement age. Over time, the age for State pension (contributory) was reduced to 66 years and State pension transition was payable for one year.

Generally, in order to qualify for a State pension transition a person had to be over the age of 65, and be retired from the workforce. For the purposes of this pension, a person is still regarded as retired if he/she is –

- in employment that is insurable at class J PRSI, with weekly earnings of less than €38.00, or

- self-employed with earnings of less than €5,000 per year.

This condition ends at age of 66 with transfer to the State Pension contributory, which has no criteria related to employment status.