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Ask the expert
I ’ ve recently given up my job to look
Q after my mum . I live with my mum and the only income I have is Carer ’ s Allowance . I had about £ 2,000 saved , but this is pretty much gone now , and I ’ ve been wondering if there are any other benefits I could claim . I ’ m a bit confused because I spoke to a friend who suggested I claim Income Support , but when I spoke to the Jobcentre they told me that I can ’ t claim Income Support because everyone in my area now has to claim a benefit called Universal Credit . Can you help ?
The benefit system is
A complicated , so
it ’ s not surprising if you feel a bit unsure about what benefits you can claim .
Universal Credit ( UC ) is a means-tested benefit for working age people that is being gradually introduced . It is replacing Income Support , income-based Jobseeker ’ s Allowance , income-related Employment and Support Allowance , Housing Benefit , Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit ( all known as legacy benefits ).
When UC will affect you will depend on your circumstances and where you live . It is being rolled out across the country gradually and is expected to cover the whole of the UK by the end of 2018 .
It sounds like your area is a full ( digital ) service area , which means you wouldn ’ t be able to make a new claim for Income Support as a carer , and would have to claim UC instead . You can check this on the Revenue Benefits website , where you can enter your postcode , and it tells you whether you are in a full ( digital ) service area and so have to claim UC . www . universalcreditinfo . net .
I have outlined some information on UC below , so you have a better idea of what to expect .
Note : If you are already getting a legacy benefit , and there are no changes in your circumstances , UC won ’ t affect you until you are migrated over to UC , which is called managed migration . At the moment , managed migration isn ’ t expected to happen until 2019 .
UC is a monthly benefit
( and is paid monthly in arrears ), with each month being called an assessment period . To work out how much UC you will get , the DWP will :
• work out your maximum UC amount
• work out your income
• deduct your income from your maximum UC amount
You will continue to be paid the Carer ’ s Allowance of £ 64.60 pw , and will get monthly payments of UC of £ 194.34 a month
As UC is paid monthly in arrears it means you will have to wait over a month before you will get your first UC payment . If this will be difficult , you can apply for a short term advance payment . You should be able to get a month ’ s worth of UC which should be paid to you within five days .
While for some people UC will be less than the amount they could have got on legacy benefits , for those in your situation , you will actually get a tiny bit more on UC than you would have
20 carersuk . org