Employed Person's Allowance

Employed Person's Allowance Team

Markwell House

Market Street

Douglas

IM1 2RZ

Telephone:+44 1624 685656 (option 1)

Email:Send Email

Basic qualifying conditions

You may be able to get Employed Person's Allowance (EPA) if you are:

a lone parent bringing up at least one child or young person you get Child Benefit for
a member of a couple bringing up at least one child or young person who you or your partner get Child Benefit for
a member of a couple and you aren’t bringing up a child or young person and either you or your partner (or both of you) is 'severely disabled' or has 'exceptional caring responsibilities' (see below) or
someone who is classed as a 'Disabled Worker' (see below)

and you:

satisfy the 'Isle of Man residential condition' (see below),
are in - or treated as being in - 'remunerative work' (see below) and working for at least the minimum number of hours which apply in your circumstances (see 'Minimum work requirements' below), and
have an income which is below the amount set in law (called the 'applicable amount') that applies in your circumstances

For more information

Please read Leaflet EPA5 'A Guide to Employed Person’s Allowance' for further information.

How to claim EPA

Download and print a claim form EPA1 or you can get one from a Social Security office.

Complete the claim form carefully in ink, using CAPITAL LETTERS, and sign it. If you are a couple you must provide the required information about both of you and both of you must sign it.

Please take or send your completed claim form with the required documents (as detailed in the claim form) to the address at the top of this page. Please don’t scan it and send it to us electronically; we can’t accept scanned images or photocopies.

If you pay for child care

Please download and print a claim form EPA4 or you can get one from a Social Security office.

Awards and payments

EPA is awarded for a period of between 4 and 26 weeks at a time.

It is normally awarded from the Tuesday following the day we receive your claim, unless we receive it on a Tuesday in which case EPA will be awarded from that day.

EPA will be paid to you either:

Weekly in cash by MiCard and collected at a post office of your choice; or
Fortnightly, in arrears, by direct credit into your bank or building society account

There is a section in the claim form which asks you how you want to be paid.

Changes in your circumstances

Once an EPA award has been made the amount payable will normally stay the same throughout the whole award period, even if your work hours or rate of pay changes during the award period.

Please read Leaflet EPA5 'A Guide to Employed Person’s Allowance' for details of changes of circumstances you must report to us straightaway.

Subsequent awards of EPA

If you want to continue claiming EPA after your initial award you’ll need to make another claim using form EPA1 within 2 weeks of your last award of EPA ending. You’ll need to supply your payslips as above. We won’t normally need to see proof of the amount of any rent or mortgage you have to pay.

Disabled workers

You qualify as a 'Disabled worker' if you:

are getting, or you recently stopped getting, certain incapacity or disability benefits and
have an illness or disability which puts you at a disadvantage in getting a job

For more information see the relevant section in the Leaflet EPA5 'A Guide to Employed Person’s Allowance'

Isle of Man residential condition

To qualify for EPA you normally have to satisfy the Isle of Man residential condition.

You will satisfy the Isle of Man residential condition if:

you were born in the Isle of Man (IoM) or
you have been ordinarily resident in the IoM for a continuous period of 5 years at any time or
you have been ordinarily resident in the IoM for 3 or more separate periods which, when added together, amount to at least 10 years

Or you are:

the husband, wife or civil partner of a person who satisfies any of the conditions set out above
the widow, widower or surviving civil partner of a person that satisfied any of the conditions set out above
the former husband, wife or civil partner of a person who satisfies any of the conditions set out above
the son or daughter of a person who satisfies any of the conditions set out above and that person was (or their spouse or civil partner was) serving in HM Forces when they were born

If you don’t satisfy the Isle of Man residential condition but you do meet the other conditions required for EPA then you may still be entitled to EPA if you can show that it would be exceptionally harsh or oppressive to deny you EPA. Please complete and send in the Form A17 ‘Isle of Man Residential Qualification’.

Remunerative work

To qualify for EPA you or your partner (if you have one) must:

be in a job that is expected to last for at least 5 weeks when you make your claim, and
be working for at least the number of hours applicable in your circumstances as set out in the 'Minimum work requirements' section.

You may also qualify for EPA if, immediately following a previous award for EPA, rather than being in paid work you are off work due to illness or incapacity and your employer continues to pay you your normal earnings (ignoring any deductions they may make from your wages for any Incapacity Benefit you get from Social Security)

But you can only qualify for EPA in the above circumstance for a maximum period of 26 weeks in any 52 week period.

You may also qualify for EPA if, immediately following a previous award of EPA, rather than being in paid work you are either:

on maternity leave and getting Maternity Allowance from Social Security
on adoption leave and getting Adoption Allowance or
self-employed, but you can’t work because you’re pregnant or have recently given birth

Minimum work requirements

The minimum work requirements for EPA are as set out below.

Categories of people	Minimum work requirements
Lone parents
Standard case (i.e. none of the exceptions mentioned below apply)	if the youngest or only child in the family is aged under 13, 16 hours per week. if the youngest or only child in the family is aged 13 or over, 24 hours per week. Note: Hours spent in work-related training or education may be counted towards meeting the minimum work requirement, as if they are hours spent in work. However, the lone parent must actually be working for at least 16 hours a week.
Exceptions
Lone parent who has exceptional caring responsibilities	16 hours per week
Lone parent whose child or young person is disabled, has been incapacitated for at least 30 days or is at least 6 months pregnant	16 hours per week
Lone parent who is receiving a bereavement support payment	16 hours per week
Couples with children
Standard case (i.e. none of the exceptions mentioned below apply)	if the youngest or only child in the family is aged under 13, 32 hours per week if the youngest or only child in the family is aged 13 or over, 48 hours per week. If both partners work their total work hours will be taken into account. Note: Hours spent in work-related training or education by either partner may be counted towards meeting the minimum work requirement, as if they are hours spent in work. However, one member of the couple must actually be working for at least 30 hours a week.
Exceptions
One partner is disabled, has been incapacitated for at least 30 days, is at least 6 months pregnant or is in work-related training or work-related education	32 hours per week If both partners work their total work hours will be taken into account. Note: Hours spent in work-related training or education by either partner may be counted towards meeting the minimum work requirement, as if they are hours spent in work. However, one member of the couple must actually be working for at least 30 hours a week.
A child or young person in the family is disabled, has been incapacitated for at least 30 days or is at least 6 months pregnant	32 hours per week If both partners work their total work hours will be taken into account. Note: Hours spent in work-related training or education by either partner may be counted towards meeting the minimum work requirement, as if they are hours spent in work. However, one member of the couple must actually be working for at least 30 hours a week.
One or both partners is receiving a bereavement support payment	32 hours per week If both partners work their total work hours will be taken into account. Note: Hours spent in work-related training or education by either partner may be counted towards meeting the minimum work requirement, as if they are hours spent in work. However, one member of the couple must actually be working for at least 30 hours a week.
One or both partners have exceptional caring responsibilities	16 hours per week.
One or both partners is a severely disabled person	16 hours per week.
Couples without children
One or both partners have exceptional caring responsibilities	16 hours per week.
One or both partners is a severely disabled person	16 hours per week.
Disabled worker
Person who qualifies as a “Disabled Worker”	16 hours per week.

Trainees

A trainee is treated as engaged in remunerative work.

A person is not a trainee if they have been a trainee for the preceding 365 days.

A person is a trainee if:

in the week in which they make their claim for EPA they are undergoing a course of training or instruction which requires their attendance for at least the minimum hours or the minimum total combined hours which they would be required to work to meet the minimum work requirement in their particular case if they were not a trainee
they are entitled to be paid a training allowance by the Treasury in respect of their attendance on their course
in the week preceding the week in which their course started (or, if that course was immediately preceded by one or more such courses, prior to the start of the earlier course or the earliest of those courses) they:
- actually met (on average) the minimum work requirement, and
- had been awarded EPA

Exceptional caring responsibilities

A person has 'exceptional caring responsibilities' if they are either:

getting Carer’s Allowance, or
not getting Carer’s Allowance but are regularly and substantially engaged in caring for a severely disabled person

Severely disabled person

A 'severely disabled person' is a person who is either:

getting the highest or middle-rate care component of Disability Living Allowance
getting an Attendance Allowance
claiming Disability Living Allowance and would be entitled to the care component of that allowance at the highest or middle rate if the 3 months qualifying period for that benefit didn’t apply
claiming Attendance Allowance and would be entitled to that allowance if the 6 months qualifying period for that benefit didn’t apply