Contribution credits for parents working 20 hours or less: Home Responsibility Protection (HRP)

Apply for Home Responsibility Protection

Fill out the form below to apply for HRP contribution credits.

About Home Responsibility Protection

If you stay at home to care for a child under school age, or you work less than 20 hours per week, you can apply to protect your Social Security contribution record with a credit called Home Responsibility Protection.

This protects your entitlement to a pension and Survivor’s Benefit while you’re not working.

It doesn’t cover you for sickness or maternity benefits.

Who can apply for Home Responsibility Protection

You can claim HRP if:

you're 18 or over but under pension age
you've been living in Jersey for at least six months
you work less than 20 hours a week
you stay at home to look after a child under school age
you live with the child you're looking after
the child you're caring for attends school or nursery for under 20 hours a week
this child is not cared for by a childminder

You can claim HRP for a maximum of 10 years over your working life.

To receive HRP, you can be any of the following:

parent
step-parent
somebody living with and looking after the child
single
married
co-habiting
civil-partnership

Only one adult in the family can claim HRP but this can be a man or a woman.

Maternity benefits

While you’re receiving maternity benefits, you can’t claim HRP. However, you can still apply for HRP so that the credits start as soon as your maternity benefit ends.

If you're receiving HRP and have another child, you need to check if you are eligible for maternity benefits.

Maternity and family support

Working and claiming Home Responsibility Protection

You can work up to 20 hours a week and still claim HRP.

If you work more than 20 hours a week, contact us.

If you become employed and pay Class 1 contributions, we’ll automatically stop your HRP credits for the months you're working.

Back dating Home Responsibility Protection

We can back date your HRP credits if you provide all the information required in the form.

Collect a form from the Social Security Department reception or phone us and we'll post one to you.

If your claim is not allowed

If we decide you're not eligible for HRP credits, we’ll write to you to tell you. We’ll also tell you what to do if you’re not happy with the decision.

If you’re not eligible for HRP, you’ll be expected to pay Social Security contributions.

About contributions

Change in circumstances while you're claiming

We need to know if:

the number of hours you work changes
the amount that you earn changes
you and your child change address
another child joins the family
you and your child leave the Island for 28 days or more
you or your child go into hospital for 28 days or more