HMRC alerts older citizens to potential £5,000 State Pension boost from oversight

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) began contacting older individuals in September 2023, whose National Insurance (NI) records may have been impacted by missing periods of Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP), leading to a deficit in their State Pension payments.

The HRP was a scheme that operated between April 6, 1978 and April 5, 2010. It reduced the number of qualifying years of NI contributions required for a person with caring responsibilities to receive the full Basic State Pension.

HMRC is collaborating with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to identify those affected by this historic administrative error over the next 18 months, ensuring eligible individuals receive any arrears payments as swiftly as possible.

Approximately 210,000 older people are due to receive a portion of underpayments totalling £1.3 billion, equating to around £5,000 each. The DWP has also previously stated that those closest to the State Pension age in their 60's and 70s are being prioritised with letters, however, anyone who believes they may have been affected can verify their eligibility online using the self-identification tool on GOV.UK here, reports the Daily Record.

Instructions on how to use the online HRP tool

You might still be eligible to apply for HRP, for full tax years (6 April to 5 April) between 1978 and 2010, if any of the following were true:

• you were claiming Child Benefit for a child under 16
• you were caring for a child with your partner who claimed Child Benefit instead of you
• you were getting Income Support because you were caring for someone who was sick or disabled
• you were caring for a sick or disabled person who was claiming certain benefits

You can also apply if, for a full tax year between 2003 and 2010, you were either

• a foster carer
• caring for a friend or family member’s child (‘kinship carer’) in Scotland

Who automatically qualified for HRP

The guidance on GOV. UK clarifies that most people received HRP automatically if they were:

• getting Child Benefit in their name for a child under the age of 16 and they had given the Child Benefit Office their National Insurance number
• getting Income Support and they did not need to register for work because they were caring for someone who was sick or disabled

If your partner claimed Child Benefit instead of you

If you reached State Pension age before April 6, 2008, you cannot transfer HRP.

However, you may be able to transfer HRP from a partner you lived with if they claimed Child Benefit while you both cared for a child under 16 and they do not need the HRP.

They can transfer the HRP to you for any 'qualifying years' they have on their National Insurance record between April 1978 and April 2010. This will be converted into National Insurance credits.

Married women or widows

You cannot get HRP for any complete tax year if you were a married woman or a widow and:

• you had chosen to pay reduced rate Class 1 National Insurance contributions as an employee (commonly known as the small stamp)
• you had chosen not to pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions when self-employed

If you were caring for a sick or disabled person

You can only claim HRP for the years you spent caring for someone with a long-term illness or disability between April 6, 1978 and April 5, 2002.

You must have spent at least 35 hours a week caring for them and they must have been getting one of the following benefits:

• Attendance Allowance
• Disability Living Allowance at the middle or highest rate for personal care
• Constant Attendance Allowance

The benefit must have been paid for 48 weeks of each tax year on or after April 6, 1988 or every week of each tax year before April 6, 1988.

You can still apply if you are over State Pension age. You will not usually be paid any increase in State Pension that may have been due for previous years.

If you were getting Carer's Allowance

You do not need to apply for HRP if you were getting Carer's Allowance. You'll automatically get National Insurance credits and would not usually have needed HRP.

If you were a foster carer or caring for a friend or family member's child.

You have to apply for HRP if, for a full tax year between 2003 and 2010, you were either:

• a foster carer
• caring for a friend or family member’s child (‘kinship carer’) in Scotland

All of the following must also be true:

• you were not getting Child Benefit
• you were not in paid work
• you did not earn enough in a tax year for it to count towards the State Pension

Check if you are eligible

You can use the Home Responsibilities Protection eligibility checker on GOV. UK here to see if you're eligible.

Before you start the HRP check

You will be asked if you have gaps in your National Insurance record. If you cannot find your National Insurance record online or do not know the answers to any of the questions, you can choose 'Do not know' and you'll be told how to get this information.

If you reached State Pension age on or after 6 April 2010

Any HRP you had for full tax years before April 6, 2010 was automatically converted into National Insurance credits, if you needed them, up to a maximum of 22 qualifying years.

A full overview of HRP can be found on GOV. UK here.