No Country For Old Men

practice

I singed for Pre Rerirement in 2005 and understood as per form I would be awarded Credits towards Transition pension. Now I learn I have not been awarded these credits and do not qualify.
Told there is now nothing I can do by an obnoxious female in my local Welfare Office.
Does anybody know what I can do now

irishpancake

practice wrote: »

I singed for Pre Rerirement in 2005 and understood as per form I would be awarded Credits towards Transition pension. Now I learn I have not been awarded these credits and do not qualify.
Told there is now nothing I can do by an obnoxious female in my local Welfare Office.
Does anybody know what I can do now

This scheme was abolished for new entrants in 2007, but as you were already in at that stage, it should have had no effect on you.

I found something on Kildarestreet.com, an archive of Dáil debates, from 2007, quoted below:

http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2007-10-09.1133.0

Martin Cullen (Minister, Department of Social and Family Affairs; Waterford, Fianna Fail)

The Pre-Retirement Credits Scheme (PRECS) enables credits to be awarded to persons who are aged 55 years or older, who are retired from the workforce and no longer looking for work and who, in the immediately preceding period, were in receipt of either Jobseekers Benefit/Allowance or credits in respect of 390 days of continuous unemployment.

Pre-retirement credits can only be maintained through a signed annual declaration from the claimant (i.e. that confirms his or her unemployment and retirement from the workforce) and are reckonable for the Widows/Widowers (Contributory) Pension, the Deserted Wifes Benefit, the Guardians Payment (Contributory) and occupational injuries benefits only.

From July 4th, 2007 the Scheme was discontinued for new entrants. This was done in conjunction with the phasing out the Pre-Retirement Allowance (PRETA) and is consistent with efforts being made to encourage and facilitate people to continue working up to and beyond pension age.

Labour market conditions have improved dramatically since the introduction of PRETA in 1990. The practical effect of conditions in 1990 was that many long-term unemployed persons over 55 years of age were unlikely to work again, and it was not meaningful to continue to ask them to prove that they were actively seeking employment.

The drop in long-term unemployment since that time has meant that this rationale has largely disappeared.

People of working age who are no longer liable for PRSI contributions may opt to protect their pension entitlements by applying to become a voluntary contributor. In order to be admitted to the voluntary contributions scheme, a person must have a minimum of 260 weeks of PRSI paid in either employment or self-employment and apply within 12 months of being insurable. The requirement to have 260 paid contributions to gain access to the scheme is essential in that it ensures that the requisite number of paid contributions required is in place to establish a contributory pension entitlement.

Perhaps the above can help.

practice

irishpancake

Thank you for this.
It just seems every time i deal with them it's like entering a large maze and being
unable to find the exit.

irishpancake

practice wrote: »

irishpancake

Thank you for this.
It just seems every time i deal with them it's like entering a large maze and being
unable to find the exit.

Well, if you continued to meet the qualifying conditions, I can see no reason why you would not get your credits, as per the quote above from the then Minister.

Were you getting a weekly payment?

For your own sanity, I would advise you to submit this request form on-line, which does not require interaction with personnel who are often under pressure, and perhaps do not understand your particular circumstances. It would be a good start at least.

Just click on the link below, and fill in the form, you need to know your PPSN.

SI Contribution Record Request

You can request a copy of your social insurance contributions record by completing this form. We will send a copy of your record by post to the address you provide. Please note that you must provide your Personal Public Services Number (PPS Number) when using this service. If you do not have a PPS Number, please contact your PPS Number Registration Centre.

If you are requesting a copy of your social insurance record to calculate your State Pension entitlement please read the State Pension – Frequently Asked Questions.

Please note, there is also a link to the FAQ relating to the State Pension in the quote above.

Also, you should check out this:

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/social_welfare/social_welfare_payments/older_and_retired_people/state_pension_transition.html.....

Full details of entitlement rules are given, including number of paid contributions required....

As you know, the Transitional Pension is also now gone, but not for those who already satisfy qualifying conditions:

Changes to State Pension (Transition)
Under the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2011 the State Pension (Transition) will no longer be paid from 1 January 2014. This means that there will then be a standard State Pension age of 66 years for everyone. If you have qualified for the State Pension Transition before 1 January 2014 you remain entitled to it for the duration of your claim (1 year).

It was announced in Budget 2012 that there will be some changes to contributory State pensions. These changes came into effect on 1 September 2012. A lower pension is payable to new applicants for State Pension who have a yearly average of less than 48 PRSI contributions. These changes apply to new claimants from September 2012. If you qualified for a State Pension (Transition) before September 2012 you will transfer to the State Pension (Contributory) at the same rate. These reduced rates also apply to increases for qualified adults paid with reduced rate pensions from 1 January 2013.

You can read FAQs about the changes on welfare.ie.