Backdated Carer Support Payment
When you apply for Carer Support Payment, you can ask Social Security Scotland to backdate your payment. Backdating means you may be awarded payments starting from a date in the past.
You need to have met the eligibility criteria for Carer Support Payment on the date you're backdating to. You do not need to have been eligible for Carer Support Payment for your whole backdated period.
Backdating for up to 13 weeks
Normally, you can ask Social Security Scotland to backdate your Carer Support Payment for up to 13 weeks. This means you may be awarded payments starting from a date that’s up to 13 weeks ago.
Backdating for more than 13 weeks
Social Security Scotland may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment for more than 13 weeks. To do this, the person you care for must have both:
- been awarded their disability benefit in the last 13 weeks
- had their disability benefit backdated to a start date more than 13 weeks ago
You’ll need to apply for Carer Support Payment within 13 weeks of the person you care for being awarded their disability benefit.
In this circumstance, you can get Carer Support Payment starting from the date the disability benefit was backdated to.
If you want to backdate for more than 13 weeks, you need to apply on the phone, in person or on a video call. Contact Social Security Scotland.
If you do not apply within 13 weeks of the person you care for being awarded their disability benefit
Social Security Scotland may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment for more than 13 weeks, even if you do not apply within 13 weeks of the person you care for being awarded their disability benefit.
This depends on:
- where you live
- when Carer Support Payment was introduced to your area
This does not apply if you live in:
- Dundee City
- Perth and Kinross
- the Western Isles
To check if this applies to you, select the area you live in.
If you live in Angus, North Lanarkshire, or South Lanarkshire
Social Security Scotland may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment for more than 13 weeks even if you do not apply within 13 weeks of the person you care for being awarded their disability benefit.
You’d need to have applied for Carer Support Payment by 22 September 2024 and met at least one of these criteria:
- you're a full-time student
- you’ve spent more than 1 of the last 3 years outside England, Wales or Scotland
- you have a terminal illness, so the normal Carer Support Payment rules about where you need to live may not apply to you
- the person you care for has a terminal illness, so the normal rules about where they live may not apply to them for their disability benefit
If this applies to you, you may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment as far back as 19 November 2023. To do this, you'd need to have applied for Carer Support Payment by 22 September 2024. That's 13 weeks after Carer Support Payment was introduced into your area. If you apply after this date, you may be able to backdate your payment to 19 November 2023 if you have a good reason for not applying by 22 September 2024.
If you want to backdate for more than 13 weeks needs to apply on the phone, in person or on a video call. Contact Social Security Scotland.
If you live in Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire, Fife or Moray
Social Security Scotland may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment for more than 13 weeks even if you do not apply within 13 weeks of the person you care for being awarded their disability benefit.
You’d need to have applied for Carer Support Payment by 17 November 2024 and met at least one of these criteria:
- you're a full-time student
- you’ve spent more than 1 of the last 3 years outside England, Wales or Scotland
- you have a terminal illness, so the normal Carer Support Payment rules about where you need to live may not apply to you
- the person you care for has a terminal illness, so the normal rules about where they live may not apply to them for their disability benefit
If this applies to you, you may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment as far back as 19 November 2023. To do this, you'd need to have applied for Carer Support Payment by 17 November 2024. That’s 13 weeks after Carer Support Payment was introduced in your area. If you apply after this date, you may be able to backdate your payment to 19 November 2023 if you have a good reason for not applying before 17 November 2024.
If you want to backdate for more than 13 weeks, you need to apply on the phone, in person or on a video call. Contact Social Security Scotland.
If you live anywhere else in Scotland
This backdating information does not apply if you live in:
- Dundee City
- Perth and Kinross
- the Western Isles
Social Security Scotland may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment for more than 13 weeks even if you do not apply within 13 weeks of the person you care for being awarded their disability benefit.
You’d need to apply for Carer Support Payment by 2 February 2025 and meet at least one of these criteria:
- you're a full-time student
- you’ve spent more than 1 of the last 3 years outside England, Wales or Scotland
- you have a terminal illness, so the normal Carer Support Payment rules about where you need to live may not apply to you
- the person you care for has a terminal illness, so the normal rules about where they live may not apply to them for their disability benefit
If this applies to you, you may be able to backdate your Carer Support Payment as far back as 19 November 2023. To do this, you need to apply for Carer Support Payment by 2 February 2025. That’s 13 weeks after Carer Support Payment was introduced in your area. If you apply after this date, you may be able to backdate your payment to 19 November 2023 if you have a good reason for not applying before 2 February 2025.
If you want to backdate for more than 13 weeks, you need to apply on the phone, in person or on a video call. Contact Social Security Scotland.
If you're aged 16 to 19 and studying
The eligibility criteria changed in June 2024 to enable more people to get Carer Support Payment. This means you may now be eligible for Carer Support Payment if you’re aged 16 to 19, have exceptional circumstances and study certain courses for 21 hours or more a week.
If this applies to you, the furthest back that Social Security Scotland can backdate your payment to is 23 June 2024. This is because that’s when the new eligibility criteria came into effect. Before 23 June 2024, you were not eligible for Carer Support Payment.
How backdating can affect your other benefits
Carer Support Payment is counted as income for these 4 benefits:
- Income Support
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Pension Credit
This means you might get less money from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for those benefits if you’re awarded Carer Support Payment.
If you live with a partner, they might get less money from DWP for those benefits as well.
If Social Security Scotland backdates your Carer Support Payment, this may mean DWP has overpaid you or your partner for those other benefits during that backdated period.
You or your partner may need to pay DWP back for those overpayments. To avoid this, Social Security Scotland can work with DWP to make sure you’re paid the correct amounts for Carer Support Payment and these 4 benefits:
- Income Support
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Pension Credit
If you get Universal Credit
Carer Support Payment is also counted as income for Universal Credit. You may get less money from DWP for Universal Credit if you’re awarded Carer Support Payment.
Social Security Scotland will work with DWP who’ll reduce your Universal Credit by the same amount as you get from Carer Support Payment.
If you ask Social Security Scotland to backdate your Carer Support Payment, this may mean DWP will have overpaid you for Universal Credit during that backdated period.
If DWP overpays you or your partner for Universal Credit, DWP would reduce your future payments to recover these overpayments.
You’ll usually be better off overall if you get Carer Support Payment and your income-related benefits. And if you get Carer Support Payment, you’ll also get Carer's Allowance Supplement.
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