The Department for Communities has made the Pneumoconiosis, etc., (Workers’ Compensation) (Payment of Claims) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2026 (S.R. 2026 No. 24). Signed on 23 February 2026, the instrument increases lump‑sum awards across the scheme by 3.8%, with figures rounded to the nearest pound.
Commencement is set for 1 April 2026, or the day after the Northern Ireland Assembly affirms the Regulations if that occurs later. The instrument is subject to the Assembly’s affirmative resolution procedure under Article 11(2) of the 1979 Order, so stakeholders should note that the operative date could shift if approval is delayed.
Application is deliberately narrow. Regulation 1(2) specifies that the uprated amounts apply only where a person first satisfies the conditions of entitlement on or after commencement. This means earlier awards and any case where entitlement first arose before the operative date remain on the previous rates and tables.
Three headline figures are put beyond doubt in the text. The payment where death results from diffuse mesothelioma rises to £4,248 (previously £4,092). The minimum amount payable to a dependant is also set at £4,248 (up from £4,092). Where pneumoconiosis is accompanied by tuberculosis, the specified payment increases to £8,788 (from £8,466). These are set out by substituting the new sums into regulations 5(2), 7 and 6(1)(a) of the 1988 Regulations.
Beyond these named sums, the Schedule to the 1988 Regulations is refreshed. Table 1 and Table 2 (Parts A and B) are replaced so that all age and disablement bands are uprated by 3.8%, with rounding to the nearest £1. Caseworkers should work from the new tables once the instrument is in force rather than applying a blanket percentage to old values.
The scheme itself is unchanged. Under the Pneumoconiosis, etc., (Workers’ Compensation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1979, lump‑sum payments may be made to persons disabled by a disease to which the Order applies, or to the dependants of such persons who have died. Conditions include specified dust‑related diseases, including diffuse mesothelioma and pneumoconiosis, as referenced in the amending text.
Timing is the practical hinge. The relevant date is when the person first meets the conditions of entitlement-not the date the form is lodged or processed. Where those conditions are first met on or after 1 April 2026 (or the day after Assembly approval if later), the new rates apply. Where they were first met before that date, the pre‑2026 schedule continues to govern the award.
For advisers, insurers representing estates, and trade union caseworkers, the operational actions are straightforward: update advice letters, template calculations and internal guidance to reflect the new minima and the revised schedule tables from the start date; check that any automated systems do not default to applying a 3.8% uplift to historic awards; and ensure claimant expectations are managed where entitlement predates commencement.
Governance and statutory footing are clearly recorded. The Department acted under Articles 3(3), 4(3) and 11(1) and (4) of the 1979 Order, and the instrument was sealed by a senior officer on 23 February 2026. Practitioners should monitor the Assembly’s approval status and treat 1 April 2026 as the working assumption unless a later commencement is triggered by the affirmative resolution timeline.