The Social Security Act

This Act may be cited as the Social Security Act.

This Act applies to Mainland Tanzania.

This section defines key terms used in the Act.

The Division has the power to supervise the social security sector, despite any conflicting written law.

The Division must supervise, register, inspect, monitor, and support the social security sector, and the Minister may issue binding guidelines by Gazette notice.

A person who wants to establish or keep operating a scheme, or act as a manager, administrator, or custodian, must be registered under the Act before doing so.

A scheme cannot be registered unless it meets listed conditions, and its trust deed must be approved by the Division.

A person seeking to establish a scheme, or to act as a manager, custodian, or administrator, must apply to the Division in the prescribed form and pay the prescribed fee.

The Division must keep a register of registered schemes, managers, administrators, and custodians, and may control when and how far people can inspect it or get copies on payment of the prescribed fee.

The Division may register the applicant and issue a certificate of registration, subject to this Act.

The Division may refuse to register a scheme or a person proposing to act as a manager, custodian, or administrator if the application does not meet the Act’s requirements.

The Division may de-register a scheme, manager, administrator, or custodian for listed reasons, but must first give at least 30 days’ notice and consider any representation.

De-registration must not prejudice members’ rights, and the Division may take over asset distribution or transfer and supervise the scheme if the scheme’s assets are insufficient to cover obligations to members.

Section 22 was repealed.

Every registered scheme must give each employer an identification number and give each employee member a membership number when the person is registered.

Every scheme must have a fund and keep its funds separate from other funds; it must also maintain a reserve account.

The Division may set contribution rates and minimum benefits, but it must first have an actuarial valuation done.

The Minister must make regulations in the Gazette setting the formula for calculating retirement pension benefit, invalidity benefit, special lump sum, and other scheme benefits.

Schemes, managers, administrators, and custodians may invest scheme funds, but must follow the Act and Bank-issued investment guidelines.

Trustees, managers, administrators, and custodians must manage scheme funds lawfully, act in members’ best interests, report certain issues to the Division promptly, and ensure prompt benefit payments. Schemes must also keep approved bank accounts and limit administration expenses to Division-set ratios or percentages.

Every scheme must keep accounting records, prepare annual financial statements, have the accounts audited, submit the audited accounts to the Division and the Bank, and publish them as prescribed.

The Division may direct a trustee, manager, administrator, or custodian to stop unsafe, unsound, or harmful conduct, and breaching that direction is an offence.

Employers in the public and private sectors must register their employees under the mandatory scheme, and informal-sector employees and self-employed people may be registered in the National Social Security Fund.

A person may establish a supplementary scheme, if the regulations’ terms and conditions are met.

The Division may set indexation rates for members’ benefits when needed, and scheme boards must set the interest rate on members’ accounts every year at the start of the financial year.

Section 34 is repealed.

The Minister may make rules about which collection agencies qualify and how contributions may be collected or remitted.

A scheme member is entitled to benefits if the member meets the qualifying conditions.

Scheme members are entitled to minimum benefits, and mandatory-scheme members are entitled to short-term, long-term, or both benefits. The Division must consult the Minister responsible for health when carrying out certain regulatory and supervisory technical health-service matters.

A member or dependant cannot receive more than one benefit for the same contingency, except that this rule does not apply to someone in both mandatory and supplementary schemes.

The Minister may make regulations allowing benefit entitlements to be used as collateral for home mortgages for members below retirement age.

A Retirement Benefits Committee is established to advise the President on terminal benefits exemption matters, decide applications within 30 days, and may appoint sub-committees.

Inspectors are appointed by the Minister and may inspect scheme records and reports. Scheme officials must provide documents and respond to inspection findings, and false or obstructive conduct can lead to penalties.

The Division may inspect or examine managers, administrators, custodians, or schemes twice a year, and may do emergency inspections at any time when necessary.

The Minister may appoint an interim administrator to run a trustee’s, manager’s, administrator’s, or custodian’s affairs if specified problems arise.

An interim administrator must secure scheme assets, recover debts, assess compliance and solvency, obtain records, may suspend social security services, and must report within three months; the Division then makes a decision.

This section is repealed.

Aggrieved members or beneficiaries may apply in writing to the Division for review of a scheme decision, and the Division must review it within 30 days and give written reasons.

The Act says the Division’s relationship with the Bank is governed by the Act, and the Bank holds powers over regulation and supervision of financial matters.

The Bank has power to issue investment guidelines, monitor compliance with them, and inspect and examine schemes, managers, administrators, and custodians on financial matters.

The Minister may make regulations about matters needed to carry out this Act, including registration, benefits, contributions, disputes, unemployment benefits, and informal-sector coverage.

A body corporate and certain directors or officers may commit an offence if the corporate offence was known or should have been known and no due diligence was taken; a convicted body corporate is liable to a fine of at least 20 million shillings.

Register entries are prima facie evidence of the facts they record, and a document certified by the Director as a true copy or extract from the Register is admissible in court.

If this Act conflicts with another written law about the Division’s functions or powers, this Act prevails.

This section defines “effective date” as the date this Part comes into operation.

This saving clause keeps certain past appointments and directions valid after repeal, unless they are revoked, cancelled, or end by lapse of time, and it tells readers how to interpret old statutory references.

Existing deeds, agreements, and similar arrangements that were already in force before the effective date continue to bind or benefit the Division for transferred property, as if the Division had been named instead of the Authority.

Assets and liabilities under the Authority immediately before the effective date vest in the Division.

Powers, rights, privileges, duties, and obligations that were exercisable by the Authority before the effective date become vested in the Division from that date.

Pending court or tribunal proceedings involving the Authority may be treated as proceedings by or against the Division after the effective date, and pending complaints and claims against the Authority are presumed to be complaints to the Division.

Some Authority employees must be transferred to public offices on no worse terms; those not transferred must receive terminal benefits; transferred employees stay in pension or superannuation schemes.