Claiming Personal Independence Payment (PIP) - Fill in the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) form

When you start your claim for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) sends you a form to fill in. You can choose whether you receive a paper form or a link to an online form. You usually get the paper form within two weeks of your phone call to start the claim.

If you choose a paper form, you will get the form and an information booklet in the post. The form is called “PIP2: How your disability affects you” and it is 50 pages long.

This link shows you what the PIP2 form looks like (PDF file size 672kb). However, you need to use the form the DWP sends you and not this sample form.

One month deadline

You need to send your form back within one month for your PIP claim to go ahead. If you need this deadline to be extended, phone the DWP and ask for an extension. You will need to explain why you need more time.

If you don’t send the form back in time, the DWP will refuse your claim unless you have a good reason for sending it in late. You will need to tell them why you sent the form late.

If the DWP refuse your claim because you sent the form back too late and they don’t think that you have a good reason, you can start again with a new claim. You can also challenge the decision to refuse your claim.

What to put

Answer all of the questions on the form.

Fill in the extra information, especially when you have ticked that you have difficulty or need help with an activity. Don’t be afraid to point out the obvious. The DWP does not know how your disability affects you unless you tell them.

When you answer the questions about your day-to-day activities, think about the help you need (from a person or a thing) to do each activity:

• Safely
• Well enough (including without experiencing too much pain or exhaustion)
• Often enough
• Fast enough

Your form does not have to be perfect. You can check what is important to put by:

• Looking at our Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Test guide to find out what you can score points for
• Doing the PIP self test on the Benefits and Work website

Take care

It can be hard to fill out the form yourself. Make it easier by following these tips:

• Don’t do it all at once
• Get more time
• Get help

You don’t have to do all of the form in one go. Do a bit each day and take rests. Answer the easy questions and come back to the ones you need to think about.

You don’t have to write all of your answers on the form. You can write them on separate sheets. Or you can type your answers and print them off. Do whatever is easiest for you.

Ask the DWP for more time if you need it. You will need to phone them and tell them why you need more time. Use the phone number on the letter that came with your form.
 
You don’t have to do the form on your own. You can ask someone else to help you. They can help by keeping you company while you do it, talking to you about your answers before you write them or they can fill in the form for you. It can be someone you know or you can find a benefits adviser near you using our Find an Adviser tool.

Reviewed: February 2023