His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) says UK households can increase their State Pension by making one important check.
The government department has warned that pensioners may be missing Home Responsibility Protection (HRP) from their National Insurance record and can boost their pension pot by claiming some money back.
HRP was a scheme set up to help protect the State Pension of parents’ and carers’, but it was replaced by National Insurance credits in 2010.
You will have received HRP automatically between April 6, 1978 and April 5, 2010, if you were claiming Child Benefit for a child under 16 and Income Support because you were looking after a sick or disabled person, and were not available for work.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), HMRC said: “If you claimed Child Benefit before May 2000, you may be missing Home Responsibility Protection (HRP) from your National Insurance record.
“Claiming now may increase your State Pension. Complete our eligibility checker and see if you can claim.”
While the HRP scheme has now ended, HMRC says you may still be able to apply for it if, for full tax years between 1978 and 2010, you were either:
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sharing the care of a child under 16 with a partner you lived with and they claimed Child Benefit instead of you – you may be able to transfer their HRP
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caring for a sick or disabled person
You can also apply if, for a full tax year between 2003 and 2010, you were either a foster carer or caring for a friend or family member’s child in Scotland.
If you reached State Pension age before April 6, 2010, HRP reduced the number of qualifying years you needed to get the full basic State Pension by up to 22 years. To get a full basic State Pension a woman needed 39 qualifying years and a man 44 qualifying years.
If you reached State Pension age on or after April 6, 2010, HRP was converted into National Insurance credits, if you needed them, up to a maximum of 22 qualifying years.
For those who reached State Pension age between April 6, 2010 and April 5, 2016, you needed 30 qualifying years on your National Insurance record to get the full basic state pension. If you reached State Pension age after April 6, 2016, then you may be eligible for the new State Pension.
To submit a claim for HRP, you can apply online via GOV.UK or by post.
