You can no longer get a Self Isolation Payment if you live in England.
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 Protect Scotland app or the Incident Management Team has told you that you must self isolate.
To get a Self Isolation Payment, you have to have done a PCR test.
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 self isolating for any other reason. You cannot get a grant to cover time off while waiting for a PCR test result if the result comes back negative and you are fully vaccinated.
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 local council to find out about their low income scheme. Most councils consider income of less than £1,608.75 per month to be low income.
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 £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, Trace Protect (Wales) has told you that you must self isolate.
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.
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: April 2022