The Principal Act is amended -

(a) in section 108 -

(i) in subsection (2), by the insertion of the following definitions:

“ ‘aggregated contributions method’, in relation to a claimant, has the meaning assigned to it by section 109(6B);

‘home caring period’ means, in the case of a person who attained pensionable age on or after 1 September 2012, any contribution week during which -

(a) he or she was aged 16 or over but under pensionable age and was resident in the State, or was a person referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of section 219(2),

(b) he or she was not engaged in remunerative employment, other than employment specified in paragraph 5 of Part 2 of Schedule 1, or he or she does not have a paid or credited or voluntary contribution reckonable (“contribution reckonable”) for State pension (contributory) purposes,

(c) he or she was not in receipt of a weekly payment under this Act, other than a payment under section 100 or 180, or a payment under section 186F, and

(d) he or she can, in accordance with regulations made under subsection (2B), demonstrate that, due to the nature and extent of his or her home carer responsibilities, he or she was unable to engage in insurable employment or self-employment;

and “home carer” shall be construed accordingly,

(ii) in subsection (2A), by the insertion of “or ‘home caring period’ ” after “homemaker”, and