Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2010

18.

Widowed or surviving civil partner grant.

18.— Section 137 (amended by section 11 of the Act of 2008) of the Principal Act is amended by substituting the following section for section 137:

“Entitlement to widowed or surviving civil partner grant.

137.— (1) Subject to this Act, a grant (in this section referred to as a ‘widowed or surviving civil partner grant’) of €6,000 or any higher amount that may be prescribed, shall be paid to a widow, widower or surviving civil partner on the death of his or her spouse or civil partner who—

(a) is entitled to or in receipt of bereavement grant, or

(b) is entitled to or in receipt of—

(i) death benefit under section 81,

(ii) widow’s (contributory) pension under Chapter 18 of Part 2,

(iii) widower’s (contributory) pension under Chapter 18 of Part 2,

(iv) widow’s (contributory) pension under Chapter 18 of Part 2 or widower’s (contributory) pension under Chapter 18 of Part 2 by virtue of Regulation (EC) No. 883/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 or by virtue of a reciprocal agreement under section 287,

(v) one-parent family payment,

(vi) State pension (non-contributory), or

(vii) surviving civil partner (con-tributory) pension under Chapter 18 of Part 2,

which includes an increase in respect of a qualified child.

(2) In this Chapter—

‘spouse’ includes a party to a marriage that has been dissolved, being a dissolution that is recognised as valid in the State and in relation to a widow or widower who has been married more than once, refers only to the widow’s or widower’s last spouse;

‘surviving civil partner’ means a surviving civil partner who has at least one qualified child who normally resides with him or her at the date of death of his or her civil partner;

‘widow’ means a person who has at least one qualified child who normally resides with her at the date of death of her spouse or whose child is born within 10 months of the date of death of her spouse, and includes a woman who would otherwise be a widow but for the fact that her marriage has been dissolved, being a dissolution that is recognised as valid in the State;

‘widower’ means a person who has at least one qualified child who normally resides with him at the date of death of his spouse, and includes a man who would otherwise be a widower but for the fact that his marriage has been dissolved, being a dissolution that is recognised as valid in the State.”.