Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012: Data Sharing Agreement with Population Office

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A decision made 22 July 2013:

Decision Reference:MD-S-2013-0067
Decision Summary Title :	Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012 – Data Sharing between the Social Security Department and the Population Office		Date of Decision Summary:	19 July 2013
Decision Summary Author:	Business Manager		Decision Summary: Public or Exempt?	Public
Type of Report: Oral or Written?	Written		Person Giving Oral Report:
Written Report Title :	Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012 – Data Sharing between the Social Security Department and the Population Office		Date of Written Report:	19 July 2013
Written Report Author:	Operations Director		Written Report : Public or Exempt?	Public
Subject: Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012 – Data Sharing Agreement between the Social Security Department and the Population Office.
Decision(s): The Minister approved the ongoing exchange of information between the Social Security Department and the Population Office to facilitate the administration of the new registration cards that are issued by both departments under the new Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012.
Reason(s) for Decision: The new Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012 which came into force on 1 July 2013 aims to introduce a more effective and efficient system of immigration control while streamlining existing processes for businesses. It also changes the previous system for residential qualifications, replacing it with four new categories. The information exchanged between the Social Security Department and the Population Office enables individuals to clarify their residency and work status more effectively using records held by both departments to verify proof of residence in the island. The new registration cards under this legislation have been introduced to replace the previous Social Security cards, so that employers, landlords and property agents can confirm an individual’s status before they move into a property or start work.
Resource Implications: This data sharing has no financial or resource implications.
Action required:
Signature:		Position:
Date Signed:		Date of Decision (If different from Date Signed):

Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012: Data Sharing Agreement with Population Office

Social Security

Ministerial Decision Report

CONTROL OF HOUSING AND WORK (JERSEY) LAW 2012 – DATA SHARING BETWEEN THE SOCIAL SECURITY DEPARTMENT AND THE POPULATION OFFICE

From Monday 1 July 2013 the Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012 came into force. The new law aims to bring in a more effective and efficient system of immigration control while streamlining existing processes for businesses. It also changed the system for residential qualifications, replacing it with four new categories.

These new controls introduce a Population Register and Registration card to improve services, statistics, and compliance. In particular, it was felt important that each individual prove their residential status, using a simple Registration Card, when accessing work or purchasing and leasing housing, so that their entitlement is clear without additional checks having to be made. A register of names and addresses has been created to maintain information about the size and composition of the population, including the migrant population, to support easier service provision and policy formulation.

This data sharing agreement enables individual’s to access a single point of contact to update their information. The Social Security Department is acting as an Agent for the Population Office so that the new registration cards can be issued by both departments. Appropriate data security arrangements are in place. An agency agreement between both departments has been signed with accompanying documents detailing the service levels and information handling protocols. Much of the information exchanged is through the Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012, and the Register of Names and Addresses (Jersey) Law 2012. The Social Security Department will also provide some additional information to assist in the verification of periods of residency, and therefore work status, for example, details of Social Security contributions paid.