NIM41405 - Home Responsibilities Protection: recording and using HRP: where HRP is recorded

Periods of HRP entitlement are recorded on a person’s National Insurance (NI) record. The entry shows the start and end date of each period of HRP and the reason for its award. All periods of entitlement are recorded whether or not they will eventually be used for the purposes of calculating the person’s entitlement to the basic State Pension (bSP), additional (State Second) Pension or the new State Pension.

Example

A person awarded Child Benefit from July 1978 to August 2004 is automatically entitled to HRP for each complete tax year from 6 April 1979 to 5 April 2003 (i.e. 24 years). This is the end of the tax year before their youngest child reached 16. They then become a carer and are awarded Income Support and do not have to register as available for work until June 2004. Because they were awarded Income Support they are entitled to HRP from 6 April 2003 to 5 April 2004 (1 year). The total number of years for which the conditions for HRP are satisfied is therefore 25. These years are recorded on their NI record.

DWP may use the HRP recorded on the NI record when calculating the person’s entitlement to the bSP (and, where relevant, the additional (State Second) Pension) or new State Pension.

For those who reached State Pension age before 6 April 2010, DWP deducted HRP years to reduce the number of qualifying years required to get a full bSP. An HRP year would not be deducted if the:

  • particular tax year was also a qualifying year (i.e. the required amount of National Insurance contributions had been paid in that year)
  • deduction of that year would reduce the number of requisite qualifying years below half the requisite number of years in the claimant’s working life, (see paragraph 5(7)(a) schedule 3, SSCBA 1992)

Those who reach State Pension age after 5 April 2010 were credited with 52 Class 3 NICs for each tax year of HRP ending before 6 April 2010. The maximum number of tax years credited with contributions was 22 for State Pension purposes.

For details of how the years of HRP can be used to enhance the amount of bSP that would be payable based on paid contributions and credits, see NIM41410.