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Carer’s Credit explained
March 8, 2021
October 26, 2021
By Jane Stanfield, Associate Practitioner
Why might you need Carer’s Credits?
Carer’s credits are not paid as a benefit but are a way of protecting your national insurance record and your state pension.
It is often easy to overlook your national insurance status amongst everything else which comes with caring, but take a moment to consider if you are losing out.
National insurance (NI) contributions are either
- deducted via PAYE or
- paid directly by the self-employed or
- credited to you if you receive an earnings replacement benefit such as statutory sick pay or carers allowance
But what happens if you are not eligible to claim carers allowance because the person you care for refuses to claim the relevant disability benefit? Or you do not care for one person for 35 hours a week, though the caring you do still impacts on your ability to earn?
In these circumstances you may still be able to receive NI credits if:
- you are caring for one or more people for at least 20 hours a week and
- either they get the relevant disability benefit, or a health or social care professional certifies that the care you provide is needed
You can find the claim form at Carer’s Credit – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
https://dementiacarers.org.uk/vcc/legal-rights/mental-capacity-and-best-interests/
https://dementiacarers.org.uk/vcc/being-a-carer/benefits/council-tax-disregard/
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Carer's Credit
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If you are not eligible to claim Carer's Allowance you may still qualify for a Carer's Credit to protect your national insurance record and your state pension
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Being a carer
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