Retired and signing on ?

Ace1

Hi,

I am due to retire in the next couple of months - I will be 62 and with many years of PRSI behind me.

Is there any reason why I should not apply for and receive unemployment benefit - I would be available for suitable (part-time ?) employment.

Any comments greatly appreciated.

Ace:

biko

Seems it would be OK?

To qualify for Jobseeker's Benefit you must:
* Be unemployed,
* Be aged under 66,
* Be capable of work,
* Be available for/genuinely seeking seek work,
* Have sufficient PRSI contributions and
* Have sustained a loss of employment in any period of six consecutive days.
Self-employed people do not qualify for Jobseeker's Benefit.

tomred1

You must prove you are looking for Full-time employment. If your retired that would deem you not genuinely seeking work.

C Fodder

Not sure of the details but there is an early retirement option if you are on jobseekers allowence. A friend of mine lost a job and had difficulty finding a replacement due to where he lived and his lack of transport. He has since "retired" and is availing of some sort of social welfare pension even though he is not yet 65.

tomred1

C Fodder wrote: »

Not sure of the details but there is an early retirement option if you are on jobseekers allowence. A friend of mine lost a job and had difficulty finding a replacement due to where he lived and his lack of transport. He has since "retired" and is availing of some sort of social welfare pension even though he is not yet 65.

This Scheme was Pre-retirement allowance but it is being phase out now. You can no longer apply for it since the 4th july 07. You had to be unemployed for 15 months to quailfy for it anyway.

Ace1

tomred1 wrote: »

You must prove you are looking for Full-time employment. If your retired that would deem you not genuinely seeking work.

Hi, Thanks for the comments.

I will be retiring from a job that I have been doing for many years. This does not mean that I am not willing to try something new. Surely, there is nothing wrong with that?

SarahMc

62 or 22, it doesn't matter, if your are actively seeking work, and have sufficient PRSI contributions, you can avail of jobseekers benefit. When that runs out jobseekers allowance comes into play and your occupational pension is counted as means.

Mrs. MacGyver

tomred1 wrote: »

This Scheme was Pre-retirement allowance but it is being phase out now. You can no longer apply for it since the 4th july 07. You had to be unemployed for 15 months to quailfy for it anyway.

Pre-Retirement allownace was discontinued for new claims from 4 July 2007. If you are not available for and genuinely seeking full-time work then you can't claim a jobseeker's payment. To keep your PRSI up to date for pension purposes you can look at voluntary contributions.

Mrs OBumble

Unemployment's pretty low, why don't you just skip the benefit application, go out and get a job? A rash thought, I know ....