
1 
These Regulations may be cited as the Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Adoption Pay and Statutory Shared Parental Pay (Normal Weekly Earnings etc.) (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2020 and come into operation on 25th April 2020.
2 

(1) The amendments made by regulations 3 and 4 apply only in relation to the calculation of normal weekly earnings for the purpose of determining—
(a) the entitlement of a person to any of the statutory payments; or
(b) the rate at which any of the statutory payments are to be paid to that person,
in a case where the first day of the period in respect of which the statutory payment is to be made is on or after the day on which these Regulations come into operation.
(2) In paragraph (1), “statutory payments” means the following payments under the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992—
(a) statutory paternity pay;
(b) statutory adoption pay; and
(c) statutory shared parental pay.
3 
In regulation 40 of the Statutory Paternity Pay and Statutory Adoption Pay (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002 (normal weekly earnings), after paragraph (7) insert—“
(8) Paragraph (9) applies where for all or part of the relevant period—
(a) a person is a furloughed employee;
(b) the person’s employer has claimed and is in receipt of financial support in respect of the person’s earnings under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme; and
(c) the person’s earnings are lower than they would otherwise have been as a result of that person being a furloughed employee.
(9) Where this paragraph applies, the person’s normal weekly earnings are to be calculated as if, during the parts of the relevant period when the person was a furloughed employee, the person was paid the amount which they would have derived from their employment had they not been a furloughed employee.
(10) For the purposes of paragraphs (8) and (9)—
 “Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme” (“the Scheme”) means any scheme to provide for payments to be made to employers on a claim made in respect of them incurring costs of employment in respect of furloughed employees arising from the health, social and economic emergency in the United Kingdom resulting from coronavirus and coronavirus disease and contained in such Directions as may be issued from time to time pursuant to section 76 of the Coronavirus Act 2020;
 “coronavirus” and “coronavirus disease” have the meanings given in section 1 of that Act;
 “furloughed employee” has the meaning given for the purposes of the Scheme.”.
4 
In regulation 32 of the Statutory Shared Parental Pay (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015 (normal weekly earnings of a claimant for statutory shared parental pay), after paragraph (6) insert—“
(6A) Paragraph (6B) applies where for all or part of the relevant period—
(a) a person is a furloughed employee;
(b) the person’s employer has claimed and is in receipt of financial support in respect of the person’s earnings under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme; and
(c) the person’s earnings are lower than they would otherwise have been as a result of that person being a furloughed employee.
(6B) Where this paragraph applies, the person’s normal weekly earnings are to be calculated as if, during the parts of the relevant period when the person was a furloughed employee, they were paid the amount which they would have derived from their employment had they not been a furloughed employee.
(6C) For the purposes of paragraphs (6A) and (6B)—
 “Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme” (“the Scheme”) means any scheme to provide for payments to be made to employers on a claim made in respect of them incurring costs of employment in respect of furloughed employees arising from the health, social and economic emergency in the United Kingdom resulting from coronavirus and coronavirus disease and contained in such Directions as may be issued from time to time pursuant to section 76 of the Coronavirus Act 2020;
 “coronavirus” and “coronavirus disease” have the meanings given in section 1 of that Act;
 “furloughed employee” has the meaning given for the purposes of the Scheme.”.
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for the Economy on 24th April 2020.
Colin Jack
A senior officer of the
Department for the Economy
The Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs concur.
Justin Holliday
Angela MacDonald
Two of the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs
23rd April 2020