L’Derry Citizens Advice Bureau contacted the Law Centre last December on behalf of a Lithuanian lady who had become destitute when her Jobseeker’s Allowance and Housing Benefit were stopped.

She had come to Northern Ireland in 2005 and worked continuously until 2014.  Her award was stopped following a Genuine Prospects of Work interview because the Agency did not think she satisfied residence rules for entitlement.

Our social security unit established that the client had permanent residence for benefit purposes but had missed the deadline for appeal. We advised the CAB adviser to lodge a late appeal and to obtain the relevant documentation from the client, covering continuous work and completion of worker registration scheme.  We helped write up the grounds for appeal and wrote a submission to NIHE.

This joint effort secured a speedy resolution for the client. JSA was reinstated on 19 December and Housing Benefit soon after. Both benefits were backdated.