Northern Ireland’s Department for Communities has made regulations to confirm when certain disability and carer benefits may continue to be paid to people living in an EEA state or Switzerland. The instrument comes into operation on 10 December 2025 and applies in Northern Ireland only.
The rule secures payment for a defined cohort already abroad by amending three existing sets of regulations. It covers Carer’s Allowance, the care component of Disability Living Allowance, and the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment. Eligibility is retained where a relevant EU Regulation applies, or applied on 31 December 2020, and the claimant has been in continuous receipt from that date, except where they have been habitually resident in the United Kingdom after 31 December 2020.
In practice this preserves export of the award for those whose position straddled the end of the Brexit transition period. It does not extend to new claims from abroad; it preserves existing entitlement for a small, pre‑existing group. The Department for Communities confirms the purpose is to place ongoing payments for this cohort on a clear statutory footing; staff guidance is to follow.
“Relevant EU Regulation” in Northern Ireland social security law refers to the EU coordination rules governing which state is competent to pay benefits, notably Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 (and the earlier 1408/71). That definition is set in Article 89 of the Welfare Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 2015 and is cross‑read into the amended provisions.
For advisers, two tests are determinative. First, uninterrupted entitlement from 31 December 2020 to the present in the same component or allowance covered by the rule. Second, no period of habitual residence in the UK after that date. Either a break in payment or a return to habitual residence in the UK after the transition date will normally end entitlement under this route, even if the claimant remains otherwise eligible.
The Regulations regularise payments that, according to the Department, have been made on an extra‑statutory basis pending legislation. Claimants in scope should not need to make a fresh claim; caseworkers will be expected to verify continuous receipt and residence history using existing evidence and system records once operational guidance issues.
These Northern Ireland provisions correspond to measures for Great Britain made on 17 November 2025, with a shared commencement of 10 December 2025. The alignment reduces divergence across the UK and simplifies administration for cross‑border cases within the social security coordination framework.
The instrument amends regulation 9B of the Social Security (Invalid Care Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1976, regulation 2B of the Social Security (Disability Living Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992, and regulation 23 of the Personal Independence Payment Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016. Each is updated to recognise those whose position was protected on 31 December 2020 and who have remained continuously entitled since.
The measure sits alongside, but is distinct from, the July 2025 changes to habitual residence, past presence and temporary absence rules, which created specific easements for people affected by overseas crises. Those provisions deal with temporary absences and crisis routes; today’s Regulations address long‑term residence in the EEA or Switzerland for a historic cohort.
For claimants and advisers the immediate impact is legal certainty. Awards should remain payable where the criteria are met, while decisions can be tested against clear statutory wording rather than extra‑statutory practice. The Department indicates only a small number of cases are affected, but confirmation on the face of the law will reduce processing risk and the scope for dispute.