England
Eligibility rules
To be eligible for a £500 Self Isolation Payment, you have to be:
- Self isolating, and
- In work, and unable to work from home, and
- In receipt of certain benefits, or on a low income.
Self Isolating
You can only get a Self Isolation Payment if you are self isolating because NHS Test and Trace (England) or the NHS Covid-19 App has told you that you must self isolate (and you aren't exempt from the requirement to self-isolate) or if you are caring for a child or disabled adult under 25 who has been told they must self isolate.
You cannot get it if you are quarantining after returning from abroad, if you are shielding or if you are self isolating for any other reason.
In work and unable to work from home
You can only get a Self Isolation Payment if you are employed or self employed, and are unable to work from home, and so will lose income.
There are no minimum hours you have to work.
You can get a Self Isolation Payment and Statutory Sick Pay at the same time.
In receipt of certain benefits or on a low income
You can get a Self Isolation Payment if your household is getting one of these benefits:
If you aren't getting any of these benefits, use our Benefits Calculator to check whether you're entitled any extra help.
If you are not entitled to any of these benefits, you may be able to get a discretionary grant from your council. Contact your council to find out if you qualify for their discretionary grants scheme.
Scotland
Eligibility rules
To be eligible for a £500 Self Isolation Payment, you have to be:
- Self isolating, and
- In work, and unable to work from home, and
- In receipt of certain benefits or on a low income.
Self isolating
You can get a Self Isolation Payment if you are self isolating because Test and Protect (Scotland), the Test and Protect app, or the Incident Management Team has told you that you must self isolate.
If you have to take time off work to care for a child under 16 who has to self isolate, you can get a Self Isolation Payment. If you have to take time off work because a disabled person for whom you provide care has to self-isolate, you can get a Self Isolation Payment.
You cannot get it if you are quarantining after returning from abroad, if you are shielding or if you are self isolating for any other reason.
In work and unable to work from home
You can only get a Self Isolation Payment if you are employed or self employed and are unable to work from home, and so will lose income.
There are no minimum hours you have to work.
You can get a Self Isolation Payment and Statutory Sick Pay at the same time.
In receipt of certain benefits, or on a low income
You can get a Self Isolation Payment if your household is getting one of these benefits:
If you aren't getting any of these benefits, use our Benefits Calculator to check whether you're entitled any extra help.
You may still be able to get a grant. Contact your council to find out about their low income scheme.
You can get a grant if you meet the eligibility criteria, even if you have no recourse to public funds.
Wales
Eligibility rules
To be eligible for a £750 Self Isolation Payment, you have to be:
- Self isolating, and
- In work, and unable to work from home, and
- In receipt of certain benefits, or on a low income.
Self isolating
You can get a Self Isolation Payment if you are self isolating because Test, Trace Protect (Wales) has told you that you must self isolate. You can't get it if you were only told to self isolate by the Covid-19 App.
If you have to take time off work to care for a child up to year 11 (up to age 25 if the child has complex needs) who has to self isolate, you can get a Self Isolation Payment.
In work and unable to work from home
You can only get a Self Isolation Payment if you are employed or self employed, and are unable to work from home, and so will lose income.
There are no minimum hours you have to work.
You can get a Self Isolation Payment and Statutory Sick Pay at the same time.
In receipt of certain benefits, or on a low income
You can get a Self Isolation Payment if your household is getting one of these benefits:
If you aren't getting any of these benefits, use our Benefits Calculator to check whether you're entitled any extra help.
You can also get a Self Isolation Payment if you are only getting Statutory Sick Pay from work and no other earnings, or if your income is less than £500 per week.
If you aren't getting any of these benefits, you may still be able to get a discretionary grant. Contact your council to find out about their discretionary scheme.
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland's scheme is different. You can find details about the Northern Ireland scheme on the NI Direct website.
Updated: October 2021