State Pensions Measures
Contributions credits for relevant parents and carers
Current position
31.Home responsibilities protection has been available for complete tax years since 1978. It helps to protect the basic state pension and certain bereavement benefits(1) of someone precluded from regular employment because they are caring for a child or a sick or disabled person. Home responsibilities protection is not a ‘credit’. Instead it works by reducing the number of qualifying years needed for a full basic state pension by up to half of the working life. Home responsibilities protection cannot reduce the number of qualifying years to below 20 for either men or women. From 2010, home responsibilities protection will not be able to reduce the number of qualifying years to below 22 for men. As state pension age equalises for men and women between 2010 and 2020, the limit on the number of qualifying years which can be reduced by home responsibilities protection will increase for women from 20 to 22.
32.Home responsibilities protection is available for complete tax years throughout which someone has been:
awarded child benefit for a child aged under 16;
regularly engaged for at least 35 hours a week in caring for someone who receives, for a minimum of 48 weeks a year, attendance allowance, or the higher or middle rate of the care component of disability living allowance, or constant attendance allowance. A similar provision exists, with slightly different rules, for income support recipients who are substantially engaged in caring for a disabled person who has claimed or is receiving one of the qualifying benefits;
from 2003, an approved foster parent or carer; or
covered by certain combinations of these conditions (Regulation 2 of the Social Security Pension (Home Responsibilities) Regulations 1994 (S.I. 1994/702 refers).
33.For example, someone who is awarded home responsibilities protection for 13 years of caring would, as a result, only have to satisfy the second contribution condition (described at paragraph 21 above) for 31 years instead of the 44 normally required for a full basic state pension.
Changes
34.The new crediting arrangements will allow a parent, a registered foster parent or a carer (i.e. those engaged in caring as defined by regulations) reaching state pension age from 6 April 2010 to build up, in certain circumstances, entitlement to a Category A basic state pension, and for their spouse or civil partner to build up entitlement to an associated Category B pension. In addition, bereavement allowance and widowed parents’ allowance(2), payable to a surviving spouse or civil partner, will be calculated by reference to the new credits in circumstances where the contributor dies on or after 6 April 2010.
35.For those people reaching state pension age on or after 6 April 2010, each complete year (subject to specified upper limits) of home responsibilities protection awarded under the existing rules of the scheme will be converted into a qualifying year for basic state pension and relevant bereavement benefits.
Widowed parent’s allowance and bereavement allowance.
Bereavement benefits were introduced on 9 April 2001, replacing the previous system of widow’s benefits which were only payable to women.