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Benefits and care homes

Key information

When you or a member of you family go into a care home, the welfare benefits you get may change. What will happen to your benefits depends on the type of benefit you get and whether you are going into or out of a care home. 

Living in a care home can also affect the benefits your partner or carer gets and any benefits you get for your children. 

Applies to: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Please note: This is a complicated area and we recommend that you seek advice from an expert benefits adviser about your particular circumstances. You can use our Find an Adviser tool to find a local adviser.

 

Index

You can read through this information sheet, or go directly to the sections you want to read by clicking on these links:

Benefits when living in a care home

Some benefits stop being paid once you, your partner or your child has been living in a care home for a set period of time. Others are paid in full or the amount reduced for your partner or children.

You should tell whoever pays the benefit that you have moved into a care home (e.g. Jobcentre Plus, the Pension Service, Disability Benefit Unit, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) or the local authority) that you have moved to live in a care home. None of your welfare benefits will stop or go down in the first 28 days of living in a care home. You should tell the people paying your benefit that you have moved into a care home before you have been in it for 28 days.  They can then make any changes that need to be made so that you are not paid too much or too little. 

If you own your home, its value could affect the amount of means-tested benefits (see below) you are able to get. In some cases this means you do not get any means-tested benefits. The rules are complicated and there are several ways that the value of a home can be ignored for a period of time. If you are in this position, it is important to get advice. Use our Find an Adviser tool to find a local adviser. 

It is important to remember that although the benefit rules state how much benefit you will get when living in a care home, you may have to use some of the money you get from benefits to pay your care home fees.  Unless you are funding yourself, the local authority will add your benefit income to your other income when working out how much you should pay towards the care home fees. You should always be left with income of at least the amount of the personal expenses allowance, this is £23.25 per week in England, £24.00 in Wales and £23.50 per week if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland. 

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Benefits that stop being paid if you move in a care home

If your care homes fees are paid in full or part by the local authority, National Health Service (NHS) or other public funds, payment of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) care component and Attendance Allowance  will stop after you have been in a care home for 28 days. 

If your DLA and Attendance Allowance payments stop, they will be paid again when you come out of the care home even if this is only for a short period of time, for example a weekend. 

If you come out of the care home but then return within 28 days, your benefit will stop again as soon as you return to the care home.  If you were living in hospital before moving into the care home and payment of DLA care component or Attendance Allowance had stopped, you will not be paid from the first day in the care home. 

The mobility component of DLA will be paid if you live in a care home.   

If you pay all of your care home fees yourself, you will still get DLA and Attendance Allowance.  If the local authority is temporarily paying your care home fees for you while you sell a property and you are going to repay them once the property is sold, you will still get DLA or Attendance Allowance.

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Benefits that will be paid if you are permanently living in a care home

If you get the following benefits, the amount you get for yourself will not change if you live in a care home.  If you get any extra money in the benefit for another person, for example for a child or your partner, it is important for you to get advice about your situation. You can use our Find an Adviser tool to find a local adviser.  It might be better for your partner to claim other benefits for themselves.

If you get contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, it will stop when you are sick and not able to look for work for more than two weeks. You should get advice to see if you can get another benefit instead, for example, Employment and Support Allowance.

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Carer’s Allowance

If you get Carer’s Allowance for looking after another person, your benefit will stop when you move to live in a care home. 

If someone gets Carer’s Allowance for looking after you, for example your partner, their benefit will stop when you move to live in a care home as they will not longer be providing care for you.   

You or your carer should tell the Carer’s Allowance Unit that you have moved into a care home.  You should also tell the relevant agency if you are getting other benefits, such as Income Support, Pension Credit or Housing Benefit (England, Scotland, Wales) Housing Benefit (Northern Ireland) – e.g. Jobcentre Plus (link opens in a new window), the Pension Service and local authority offices.  Carer’s Allowance will stop, but premiums paid as part of other benefits may continue for up to eight weeks.

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Means-tested benefits when you live in a care home

If any of the benefits you get is paid because you have low income and savings, it may go down after 28 days or stop when you move into the care home permanently. If you get money for a partner or child, this amount will stop as soon as you move permanently to live in a care home. You should tell the agency that pays the benefit, for example, Jobcentre Plus, the Pension Service, Disability Benefit Unit, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), or the local authority that you have moved to live in a care home so that they can make any changes to your benefit. 

The following benefits are paid for your living costs if you have low income and savings:

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Benefits to help pay your rent, Council Tax or mortgage/home loan

When you move to live permanently in a care home, any benefits you get to help pay your rent, lease, mortgage, or other home loan and Council Tax on your former home will stop. If you move temporarily to a care home but are going to return home, for example you have respite care or are trying out a care home, these benefits can carry on being paid for up to 52 weeks. You will need to tell the people paying the benefit that you are moving into a care home, for example Jobcentre Plus, the Pension Service or your local authority. You should tell them as soon as you know you are moving so they can make sure that you are not paid too much.

The following benefits are paid for your home:

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Benefits and going to live in a care home

Benefits for your children

If you move into a care home permanently you can get Child Benefit even if your child lives elsewhere as long as you pay towards their maintenance and no one else claims Child Benefit for them.  It may be better for the person who has your child living with them to claim Child Benefit.  If this applies to you get advice. You can use our Find an Adviser tool to find a local one.

If you are living permanently in a care home, you will not be able to get Child Tax Credit for your children unless they live with you in the care home.  The person who is looking after your child should claim Child Tax Credit for them.

If you are staying in a care home temporarily, you can get Child Tax Credit for a child who normally lives with you when you are at home. It may be better for someone else to claim Child Tax Credit for your child when you are in a care home. Get advice if this applies to you. You can use our Find an Adviser tool to find a local one.

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Your partner’s or carer’s benefit

Your partner should tell whoever pays them benefits that you have moved to live in a care home (for example Jobcentre Plus, the Pension Service, Disability Benefit Unit, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) or the local authority) so that they can decide what changes needs to be made to their benefits.  You, your partner or carer must also tell the people paying benefits if there is a change in your circumstances (or theirs) – e.g. starting work, claiming another benefit etc, that could affect the amount of benefit received.   

For the purposes of benefits claims, you and your partner will no longer be treated as a couple if you are living in the care home permanently. Your partner must apply for benefits as a single person.  If your partner gets a benefit in their own right, for example State Retirement Pension or contributory Employment and Support Allowance, they will get the benefit but any amount paid to them for you as their partner will stop. 

Your partner or carer will stop getting Carer’s Allowance as soon as you move to live in a care home permanently.  If your stay in the care home is temporary, Carer’s Allowance will stop if your Disability Living Allowance or Attendance Allowance no longer gets paid after 28 days. Carer’s Allowance will also stop if your carer has a break from caring for you for more than 12 weeks in the previous 26 weeks.

The other benefits that your partner will claim as a single person will depend on their age, whether they are caring for children, looking for work, sick, disabled or caring for a disabled person.  

If you were claiming benefit for your partner, they will have to claim Housing Benefit (England, Scotland, Wales) Housing Benefit (Northern Ireland), Council Tax Benefit and/or help with a mortgage or other loan as your benefit will stop. They should claim as soon as you move permanently into a care home.  

If you are living in a care home temporarily, for example in respite care, any benefits your partner gets that include an amount for you will only change if you are likely to be living apart for more than 52 weeks.   

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Benefits for your child when they live in a care home

If your child usually lives with you, but moves to live in a care home or residential school, any Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit and Disability Living Allowance you get for them could stop or be reduced. The rules are very complicated, so get advice if this applies to you.You should tell the agency that pays your benefit if your child moves to live in a care home or school so that they can make any changes to your benefit to avoid paying you too much.

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Benefits and going to live in a care home

Claiming benefits when you move to live in a care home

If you are not getting any benefits when you move to a care home, for example because you were working before you became ill, you might be able to get benefit when you are living in a care home.   

If you were working when you became ill, you might be getting Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). This will be paid for the first 28 weeks that you are not able to work. You may also get Working Tax Credit for the first 28 weeks if your income and savings are low.

If you not entitled to SSP and are not able to work due to ill health and you are aged under State Retirement Pension age, you could claim Employment and Support Allowance. If you are a woman who is aged over State Pension age or a man who has reached the State Pension age for a woman who has the same date of birth as you, you could claim Pension Credit. Please note that on 6 April 2010 State Pension age for women started to increase from 60 according to a schedule which would bring it in line with men's State Pension age by 2018. For more information see our guide to the State Pension age changes. If your income or savings are low enough, these benefits can help with payments towards a mortgage or other home loan if you are only temporarily living in a care home. 

If you rent you home, you may get Housing Benefit (England, Scotland, Wales) Housing Benefit (Northern Ireland) if you are temporarily living in a care home. You may also get Council Tax Benefit if you are temporarily living in a care home.

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Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance

If you are not getting Disability Living Allowance or Attendance Allowance, you can make a claim for them while living in a care home. If your care home fees are paid by the local authority, National Health Service (NHS) or out of other public funds, you will not be paid the care component of Disability Living Allowance or Attendance Allowance until you move out of the care home.  It will be paid when you come out of the care home or spend time living at home, for example weekends or holidays. You should tell the Disability Benefit Unit (link opens in a new window) when you leave and return to the care home.

If you get the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance, it will be paid when you are living in a care home.

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Benefits and going to live in a care home

Frequently asked questions

Will I still get my State Retirement Pension when I start living in a residential home?

You will still get your State Retirement Pension if you move to live in a care home. However, if your care home fees are paid in full or part by the local authority, NHS or out of other public funds, you may have to use your State Retirement Pension to pay a contribution to the cost of care. You will be left with at least the amount of the ‘personal expenses allowance’. 

This is £23.25 per week in England, £24.00 in Wales and £23.50 per week if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland. 

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This information has been produced by Citizens Advice. 

Last updated: 26 April 2012

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