Retained Self-Employed
Which benefits?
If you have right to reside as a retained self-employed person, you can claim:
If you have a right to reside as a retained self-employed person and you are ordinarily resident in the UK, you can claim:
Do I have a right to reside as a retained self-employed person?
You will only have a right to reside as a retained self-employed person if you were already living in the UK on 31 December 2020.
If your work has stopped or it is no longer genuine and effective, you may be retained self-employed as long as one of the following applies:
- You are unwell and will return to work
- You are injured and will return to work
- You are in the late stages of pregnancy
If you’re not sure whether your work is genuine and effective, or whether you retain your self-employed status, you should seek specialist advice. You can use our Find an Adviser tool to find an adviser near you.
How long am I a retained self-employed person?
You are only retained self-employed if it is clear that you will be returning to work. This is called a “genuine prospect of work”.
The rules around the genuine prospect of work test have recently changed. If this affects you, please get advice from a benefits adviser.
If you have worked in the UK for less than one year, you can retain your self-employed status for a maximum of 6 months as long as you have a genuine prospect of work.
If you have worked in the UK for more than one year, you can retain your self-employed status for 6 months as long as you have a genuine prospect of work. After 6 months, you can only continue to be retain your self-employed status if there is compelling evidence that you will be returning to work.
If you no longer retain your self-employed status, 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.
updated: 11 Jan 2021