Devolved social security benefits

Overview

The Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 allows Scottish Ministers to make regulations that would transfer some or all of the competence and jurisdiction that a sheriff has over debt recovery in the devolved social security system to the Social Security Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal.

This consultation is to determine which, if any, powers over debt recovery should be transferred from the sheriff court to the First-tier Tribunal.

Read the consultation paper 

Why your views matter

This consultation is seeking your views on what powers over debt recovery should be transferred from the sheriff court to the Social Security Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal.

Three options are presented for consideration which includes the status quo, transfer of all social security debt recovery cases currently within the jurisdiction of the sheriff court to the First-tier Tribunal or all social security debt recovery cases currently within the jurisdiction of the sheriff court which would fall within the simple procedure to transfer from the sheriff court to the First-tier Tribunal.

What happens next

We will take into account the responses we receive which may impact on the drafting of new Regulations necessary to enable any transfer of jurisdiction. It is hoped that any new Regulations would be laid in the Scottish Parliament in 2022.