Carer’s Allowance

What is Carer's Allowance?

Carer's Allowance is a benefit for people who spend at least 35 hours a week caring for someone who needs regular and substantial care. This usually means they would not be able to manage everyday tasks without your help.

If you live in Scotland, you may also be able to get Carer's Allowance Supplement.

Carer's Allowance is not means-tested, so it is not based on your income or savings (although you do have to earn less than £151 a week after tax, National Insurance and expenses).

Can I claim Carer's Allowance?

Always check with the person you're caring for before you apply for Carer's Allowance, as it could affect some of their benefits.

The person you care for must be claiming one of these benefits:

• Personal Independence Payment – daily living component
• Disability Living Allowance – the middle or highest rate of the care component
• Attendance Allowance
• Adult Disability Payment – daily living component
• Child Disability Payment – the middle or highest care rate
• Constant Attendance Allowance at or above the normal maximum rate with an Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
• Constant Attendance Allowance at the basic (full day) rate with a War Disablement Pension
• Armed Forces Independence Payment

You'll also need to meet these conditions:

• You must be 16 or over.
• You earn less than £151 a week after tax, National Insurance and expenses.
• You spend at least 35 hours a week caring for one person.
• You're not in full-time education or studying for 21 hours a week or more.
• You must have lived in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland for two out of the last three years.
• You normally live in England, Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland, or you live abroad as a member of the armed forces.
• You must meet certain immigration conditions. Citizens Advice has information about immigration status.  

You do not have to be related to, or live with, the person you're caring for.

You do not have to keep time sheets or a diary to prove you've cared for someone for 35 hours.

Carer's Allowance can be taxed and it can affect the benefits you or the person you care for receives.

If you're not eligible for Carer's Allowance, you may qualify for Carer's Credit.

Can you get Carer's Allowance for more than one person?

You can only claim Carer's Allowance for caring for one person – you do not get paid extra if you care for more than one person. If you care for more than one person, you cannot add together the time you spend caring for each of them to make 35 hours.

If you care for the person with others

You cannot get Carer's Allowance if you share the care of someone, and the other carer is already claiming:

• Carer's Allowance for that person
• the Carer Element of Universal Credit for that person. Read more about the Carer Element. 

If you want to get Carer's Allowance, you could speak to the other carer about changing their benefits. If the other carer does not want to do this, The Department for Work and Pensions will decide who should receive the benefit.

How much is Carer's Allowance?

Carer's Allowance is paid at a standard rate of £81.90 a week.

The special rules for terminal illness do not apply to this benefit, and there are no extra amounts if you care for someone with a terminal illness. Check if there are other benefits you could claim.

How do I claim Carer's Allowance?

1. Check you're eligible for Carer's Allowance.

2. Apply for the benefit. Before you claim Carer's Allowance, you must tell the person you're caring for, or their legal representative, that you're applying for this benefit.

If you're in England, Wales or Scotland:

• Apply online: you can apply online at GOV.UK  , or
• Apply by post: you can find claim forms and information about claiming at GOV.UK.   The address to send the completed form to is on the form.

You cannot make a claim by phone, but if you need help making your claim you can contact the Carer's Allowance Unit. Call 0800 731 0297, textphone 0800 731 0317, Relay UK 18001 then 0800 731 0297, or visit GOV.UK   to access the British Sign Language video relay service.

If you're in Northern Ireland:

• Apply online: you can apply online at nidirect  , or
• Apply by post: you can download the form – there are different forms depending on your age. Visit nidirect to find the right form for you.  
• Or, you can ask the Disability and Carers Service to send you a form. Call them on 0800 587 0912, textphone 0800 012 1574, email BELFASTCASTLECOURT.CAENQUIRIES@DFCNI.GOV.UK or visit nidirect  to access the British and Irish Sign Language video relay services. The address to send the completed form to is on the form.

If you need help to claim

• In some cases, someone from the DWP (or a community outreach officer if you live in Northern Ireland) can visit you to help you with your benefit claim. This is only if you are eligible. Find out more about support visits at GOV.UK.  
• You can also get help from benefits advisers at organisations like Macmillan Cancer Support  , Age UK   or Maggies Centres.  

Can Carer's Allowance be backdated?

Your claim can be backdated for up to three months if you were eligible. You do not have to give a reason for why you're claiming late.

If the person you're caring for has recently been awarded a qualifying benefit, try to claim Carer's Allowance within three months of the award. Their qualifying benefit is the benefit they get that means you can receive Carer's Allowance. This means your Carer's Allowance can be backdated to when they started their claim for the qualifying benefit – even if that was more than three months ago.

You can ask for your Carer's Allowance to be backdated when you apply. You should ask for this on the claim form where it asks "When do you want your Carer's Allowance to start?"

Will I still get Carer's Allowance if I have time off caring?

Sometimes Carer's Allowance can be paid during breaks in care. You are not paid for breaks in care until you have been caring for at least 22 out of the last 26 weeks. Or, 14 out of the last 26 weeks, if you could not provide care for 22 weeks because you or the person you care for were in hospital. This can include time spent caring before a claim for Carer's Allowance.

In any 26-week period, Carer's Allowance will be paid for breaks of up to:

• 4 weeks (for example if you or the person you care for goes on holiday, or the person you care for is in respite care).
• 12 weeks if you or the person you care for is in a hospital or a similar institution, for at least 8 out of these 12 weeks.

Officials count 'a week off' as a week when you spend less than 35 hours caring for the person. If you take odd days away, these are unlikely to affect your Carer's Allowance.

If you have a change in circumstances (like getting a job or stopping caring), you must tell The Department for Work and Pensions, or The Disability and Carers Service if you live in Northern Ireland. Otherwise, you might be overpaid and may have to pay some money back. Find the contact details you need.

If the person you're caring for is in hospital or hospice

If the person you care for goes into hospital, your Carer's Allowance will stop when their qualifying benefit stops. Their qualifying benefit is the benefit they get that means you can receive Carer's Allowance. Their qualifying benefit usually stops after 28 days.

If the person you are caring for dies, your Carer's Allowance payments will usually stop after eight weeks.

If the person you care for is getting benefits under the special rules for terminal illness and they go into a hospice, their disability benefit and your Carer's Allowance can continue unaffected. However, it's a good idea to check with the relevant government department, as the rules around this can be complicated.

Carer's Allowance and other benefits

Carer's Allowance can affect the other benefits that both you and the person you care for get.

Effect on the benefits of the person you care for

When you get Carer's Allowance, the person you care for will usually stop getting:

• a severe disability premium paid with their means-tested benefits (benefits where your eligibility and how much you get is affected by how much income, savings and investments you have)
• an extra amount for severe disability paid with Pension Credit.

You can check if their severe disability premium will stop by contacting whoever pays this benefit. This is usually Jobcentre Plus  , their local council  , or the Pension Service Helpline.  

They might also stop getting reduced Council Tax. You can contact their local council to find out if this affects them. Find contact details for their local council at GOV.UK.  

Effect on your benefits

If you're claiming any other benefits, these may change when you claim Carer's Allowance, because Carer's Allowance counts as income. But your total benefit payments will usually either go up or stay the same. Carer's Allowance does not count towards the benefit cap. Read about the benefit cap at GOV.UK.  

Universal Credit and Carer's Allowance

You can claim Universal Credit at the same time as claiming Carer's Allowance. You will get an extra amount of Universal Credit called a Carer Element if you're eligible for Carer's Allowance. However, you do not have to be entitled to Carer's Allowance, to receive the Carer Element in Universal Credit. The rules for who is eligible for the Carer Element are the same as for Carer's Allowance, except there is no earnings limit for the Carer Element.

Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit

Universal Credit is replacing these benefits. If you get Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit, you need to contact HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to tell them about your Carer's Allowance claim. Find the contact details for HMRC at GOV.UK.  

Carer Premium and Carer's Allowance

After you apply for Carer's Allowance, you might be able to get a Carer Premium in an existing award of income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance or Housing Benefit. This is a sum of money paid on top of certain benefits you're already getting. You can receive the Carer Premium even if you do not actually get paid Carer's Allowance.

Pension Credit and Carer's Allowance

If you receive Pension Credit and are entitled to Carer's Allowance, the Carer Addition will be added to your award. The Carer Addition can be added even if you are eligible for Carer's Allowance but do not receive it, for example because claim certain other benefits. This is sometimes called an underlying entitlement.

State Pension and Carer's Allowance

You cannot get the full amount of both Carer's Allowance and your State Pension at the same time.

If your State Pension is £81.90 a week or more, you will not be able to receive Carer's Allowance. If your State Pension is less than £81.90 a week, you'll be able to get a Carer's Allowance payment to make up the difference.

If you delay claiming your State Pension, this could increase the State Pension payments you get when you decide to claim it. You cannot build up extra State Pension during any period you get Carer's Allowance. Find out about delaying your State Pension at GOV.UK.  

If you get a private or workplace pension, Carer's Allowance does not count as earnings, so you can be paid this on top of your pension.

National Insurance credits and Carer's Allowance

If you're entitled to Carer's Allowance (even if it is not paid because of other benefits) you should be automatically awarded Class 1 National Insurance credits. This helps to protect your State Pension if you cannot work.

If you're not entitled to Carer's Allowance, you could be entitled to Carer's Credit. Find out more about Carer's Credit.

Queries about existing claims

If you have any queries about an existing Carer's Allowance claim or need to report a change in circumstances or those of the person you care for:

In England, Wales and Scotland, you can:

• report a change of circumstances online at GOV.UK  
• contact the Carer's Allowance Unit: call 0800 731 0297, textphone 0800 731 0317, Relay UK 18001 then 0800 731 0297, or visit GOV.UK   to access the British Sign Language video relay service
• contact the Carer's Allowance Unit by post: Carers Allowance Unit, Mail Handling Site A, Wolverhampton, WV98 2AB.

To report the death of the person you're caring for, visit GOV.UK to use the Tell Us Once service.  

In Northern Ireland, you can:

• report a change of circumstances online at nidirect  
• contact the Disability and Carers Service: call them on 0800 587 0912, textphone 0800 012 1574, email BELFASTCASTLECOURT.CAENQUIRIES@DFCNI.GOV.UK or visit nidirect  to access the British and Irish Sign Language video relay services
• contact the Disability and Carers Service by post: Carer's Allowance, Disability & Carers Service, Mail Opening Unit, PO Box 42, Limavady, BT49 4AN.

To report the death of the person you're caring for, visit nidirect to contact the Bereavement Service.  

Where can I get more help?

Some benefits can affect the other benefits that you or the person you care for get, so it's important you have the right information and advice. Here are some organisations that can provide further support:

• Marie Curie Support Line on 0800 090 2309 provides general information about benefits and finances.
• Citizens Advice   has trained advisers you can speak to and provides information on your rights, including benefits, housing, employment, debt, consumer and legal issues. Search the site for your nearest bureau in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
• Carers UK  and Carers Scotland   provide expert advice, information and support to carers.
• Turn2us   has a search function to find benefits advisers in your area, and provides people with financial support and information on benefits and grants.
• Macmillan Cancer Support   has welfare rights advisers you can speak to, and provides practical, medical and financial support for people affected by cancer.

Here at Marie Curie we cannot provide information about your specific benefit claim. For all queries about claims, you'll need to contact the relevant government department.

See our list of useful organisations for more places to go for benefits advice and information.

Useful websites

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