Pensions Act, 1990

Exclusion from and modification of Part III and Second Schedule .

37.—(1) Where the Minister is of the opinion that the benefits provided under schemes or categories of schemes during a period that the Minister considers to be of reasonable length for the purposes of this subsection are no less favourable to the members concerned than those required by this Act to be provided under the schemes or categories of schemes, he may by regulations made with the consent of the Minister for Finance exclude those schemes or categories of schemes from the application of this Part and the Second Schedule .

(2) Where the Minister considers that it would be unreasonable, having regard to their nature and character, and would be contrary to the interests of their members, to require specified schemes or categories of schemes to comply fully with specified provisions of this Part and the Second Schedule , he may by regulations made with the consent of the Minister for Finance provide that those provisions shall apply in relation to those schemes or categories of schemes with specified modifications, being modifications that in the opinion of the Minister are reasonable and do not materially alter those provisions.

(3) Where the Minister so provides by regulations, then notwithstanding anything in this Part, in the cases specified in the regulations—

(a) a period of a person's reckonable service under a scheme in different employments may be treated for the purposes of this Part as a period of reckonable service under the scheme in such one or more of those employments as may be specified;

(b) a person's reckonable service in any employment may be treated in the case of interruption of such employment as terminated or not terminated.

(4) The Minister may by regulations specify the method of calculating preserved benefit payable under schemes and for such adjustments of the amounts of such benefit as may be necessary to facilitate its computation.