187.— (1) In this section and sections 188 to 192—

“Act of 1990” means the Pensions Act 1990;

“active member” in relation to a scheme, means a member of the scheme who is in reckonable service;

“actuarial value” means the equivalent cash value of a benefit (including, where appropriate, provision for any revaluation of the benefit) under a scheme calculated by reference to appropriate financial assumptions and making due allowance for the probability of survival to normal pensionable age and beyond in accordance with normal life expectancy on the assumption that the member, at the effective date of calculation, is in a normal state of health having regard to his or her age;

“approved arrangement”, in relation to the trustees of a scheme, means an arrangement whereby the trustees, on behalf of the person for whom the arrangement is made, effect policies or contracts of insurance that are approved of by the Revenue Commissioners with, and make the appropriate payments under the policies or contracts to, one or more undertakings;

“contingent benefit” means a benefit payable under a scheme, other than a payment under section 189(4), to or for the benefit of the surviving qualified cohabitant (if the scheme so permits) or to or for the benefit of, any dependants of the member qualified cohabitant or the personal representative of the member qualified cohabitant, if the member qualified cohabitant dies while in relevant employment and before attaining any normal pensionable age provided for under the rules of the scheme;

“defined contribution scheme” has the meaning assigned to it by section 2(1) (as amended by section 29(1)(a)(ii) of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2008) of the Act of 1990;

“designated benefit” in relation to a pension adjustment order, means an amount determined by the trustees of a scheme, in accordance with relevant guidelines and by reference to the period and the percentage of the retirement benefit specified in an order under subsection (2);

“member qualified cohabitant” in relation to a scheme, means a qualified cohabitant who is a member of the scheme;

“normal pensionable age” means the earliest age at which a member of a scheme is entitled to receive benefits under the rules of the scheme on retirement from relevant employment, disregarding any rules providing for early retirement on grounds of ill health or otherwise;

“occupational pension scheme” has the meaning assigned to it by section 2(1) of the Act of 1990;

“reckonable service” means service in relevant employment during membership in any scheme;

“relevant guidelines” means any relevant guidelines for the time being in force under section 10(1)(c) or (cc) (as amended by section 5 of the Pensions (Amendment) Act 1996, section 47(c) of the Family Law (Divorce) Act 1996, section 13(b) of the Pensions (Amendment) Act 2002 and section 37 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007) of the Act of 1990;

“relevant employment” in relation to a scheme, means any employment, or any period treated as employment, or any period of self-employment to which a scheme applies;

“retirement benefit”, in relation to a scheme, means all benefits, other than contingent benefits, payable under the scheme;

“rules”, in relation to a scheme, means the provisions of the scheme by whatever name called;

“scheme” means—

(a) an occupational pension scheme within the meaning of the Pensions Act 1990,

(b) an annuity contract approved by the Revenue Commissioners under section 784 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, or a contract so approved under section 785 of that Act,

(c) a trust scheme, or part of a trust scheme, approved under section 784(4) or 785(5) of that Act,

(d) a policy or contract of assurance approved by the Revenue Commissioners under Chapter 1 of Part 30 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, or

(e) another scheme or arrangement, including a personal pension plan and a scheme or arrangement established by or pursuant to statute or instrument made under statute other than under the Social Welfare Acts, that provides or is intended to provide either or both of the following:

(i) benefits for a person who is a member of the scheme or arrangement upon retirement at normal pensionable age or upon earlier or later retirement or upon leaving or upon the ceasing of the relevant employment, and

(ii) benefits for the widow, widower or dependants of the person referred to in subparagraph (i), for his or her civil partner or the person that was his or her civil partner until the death of the person referred to in subparagraph (i), for his or her qualified cohabitant or the person that was his or her qualified cohabitant until the death of the person referred to in subparagraph (i) or for any other persons, on the death of that person;

“transfer amount” shall be construed in accordance with subsection (4);

“undertaking” has the same meaning as “‘insurance undertaking’ or ‘undertaking’” in section 2(1) (as inserted by section 3(1) of the Insurance Act 2000) of the Insurance Act 1989.

(2) The court, on application to it in that behalf by either of the qualified cohabitants, may, during the lifetime of a member qualified cohabitant, make an order providing for the payment, in accordance with this section and sections 188 to 192, to the other qualified cohabitant of a benefit consisting of the part of the benefit that is payable under the scheme and has accrued at the time of the making of the order, or of the part of that part, that the court considers appropriate.

(3) The order under subsection (2) shall specify—

(a) the period of reckonable service of the member qualified cohabitant to be taken into account, and

(b) the percentage of the retirement benefit accrued during the period to be paid to the other qualified cohabitant.

(4) Where the court makes an order under subsection (2) in favour of a qualified cohabitant and payment of the designated benefit concerned has not commenced, the qualified cohabitant is entitled to the application in accordance with section 189(1) of an amount of money from the scheme (in this subsection referred to as a “transfer amount”) equal to the value of the designated benefit as determined by the trustees of the scheme in accordance with relevant guidelines.

(5) The court, on application to it in that behalf by either of the qualified cohabitants, may make an order providing for the payment, on the death of the member qualified cohabitant, to the other qualified cohabitant of that part of a contingent benefit that is payable under the scheme, or of the part of that part, that the court considers appropriate.

(6) In deciding whether or not to make a pension adjustment order, the court shall have regard to whether proper provision, having regard to the circumstances, exists or can be made for the qualified cohabitant who is not a member under section 175.