Residential / employment statuses
A residential / employment status determines where you can work and live. There are four categories.
Your status will be printed on your registration card.
Moving house or job (registration cards)
| Entitled |
Someone who has lived in Jersey for 10 years (more details below) |
Can buy, sell or lease any property |
Can work anywhere and doesn't need permission to be employed |
| Licensed |
Someone who is an 'essential employee' |
Can buy, sell or lease any property, apart from assisted purchase or social rented housing, in their own name if they keep their 'licensed' status |
Employer needs permission to employ a 'licensed' person |
| Entitled for work |
Someone who has lived in Jersey for five consecutive years immediately before the date the card is issued, or is married to someone who is 'entitled', 'licensed', or 'entitled for work' |
Can buy property jointly with an 'entitled' spouse / civil partner. Can lease 'registered' (previously 'unqualified') property as a main place of residence. |
Can work anywhere and doesn't need permission to be employed |
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| Registered |
Someone who does not qualify under the other categories |
Can lease 'registered' property as a main place of residence |
Employer needs permission to employ a 'registered' person |
Qualifying for or losing your 'entitled' status
An 'entitled' status can be gained and lost in different ways.
| I was born in Jersey |
You must live in Jersey for a combined period of 10 years |
Once you gain your status, it's permanent |
| I wasn't born in Jersey |
You must live in Jersey for a continuous period of 10 years |
You'll keep your status as long as the total amount of time you spend living away from Jersey doesn't exceed five years |
| You'll gain permanent status if you've lived in Jersey continuously for 30 years up to the date that you make an application for a registration card |
| I wasn't born in Jersey, but moved here before I was 20 and have an 'entitled' parent |
You must live in Jersey for a combined period of 10 years before you're 40 |
Once you gain your status, it's permanent |
| I wasn't born in Jersey but moved here before I was 16 |
You must live in Jersey for a continuous period of 10 years |
Once you gain your status, it's permanent |
Qualifying for 'entitled' status on social, economic or hardship grounds
Some people may qualify for 'entitled' status on social, economic or hardship grounds.
These are exceptional cases which are decided by the Chief Minister.
You can find out more about residential and employment status in the PDF below.
Residential and employment status policy guidance
Appeals process for registration cards
Population Office and Social Security Department privacy notice
Housing categories
'Qualified' properties include those classed as 'A-H', 'A-J' and 'A-K' before July 2013. In general, all other property is 'registered', which was previously 'unqualified'.
Any planning restrictions that may have been placed on a property before July 2014, eg restrictions on ownership and occupation by 'entitled' first-time buyers, still apply.
gov.je