Self-Employed
Which benefits?
If you have right to reside as a self-employed person, you can claim:
If you have a right to reside as a self-employed person and you are ordinarily resident in the UK, you can claim:
Do I have a right to reside as a self-employed person?
You may be self-employed if you work on your own business and your work is genuine and effective.
Whether you work on your own business depends on whether you:
- Advertise your services
- Look for opportunities to work
- Are registered as self-employed with HMRC
- Keep records of your income and expenses
- Complete yearly accounts and tax returns for your business
- Have work equipment
- Have a website
Whether your work is genuine and effective depends on:
- How many hours you work
- How long you have had your job
- How much you earn
- How regular the work is
If you’re not sure whether your work is genuine and effective, you should seek specialist advice. You can use our Find an Adviser tool to find an adviser near you.
How long am I self-employed?
You stop being self-employed when you stop working on your business or when your work stops being genuine and effective.
If you have stopped being self-employed, you may need to show that you have a different right to reside to start or continue your benefit claims.
You can check whether you have another right to reside on our Types of Rights to Reside page.