Not gainfully employed means a person must not be doing any paid work (including work for which payment is expected) with earnings of more than £6 a week. If earnings are more than £6 in any one week, the allowance will not normally be payable in the following week.
Full-time education disqualifies a claimant from receiving the allowance. Part-time study (eg Open University courses) will not normally disqualify a claimant, except for any weeks of attendance for full-time instruction. Living in this country means that a claimant must:
● normally live in the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) or the Isle of Man; and
be present in the UK and have been in the UK for at least 26 weeks during the last 12 months.
Amount payable
The weekly rate is £10.50.
Increases are paid for dependants.
Invalid care allowance is taxable.
How to claim
Leaflet NI212, which includes a claim form, is available from local social security offices. Payment of the allowance cannot normally be backdated for more than three months. Benefit may be lost if a claim is delayed.
Further information: Leaflet NI212.
Invalidity benefit
Invalidity benefit consists of invalidity pension and invalidity allowance. Invalidity pension replaces sickness benefit if incapacity continues after 28 weeks.
Invalidity allowance is paid in addition to the pension to people who become chronically sick while they still have a large part of their normal working lives ahead of them.
The conditions
There are no separate contribution conditions. The medical conditions are the same as for sickness benefit-see page 29.
Amounts payable
The weekly rates are:
Invalidity pension
£17.50
People who defer retirement and who satisfy the contribution conditions for retirement pension may be entitled to invalidity pension during periods of incapacity for work up to age 70 (65 for women). The rate of benefit payable is the basic rate of retirement pension which would be payable if the claimant had retired.
Invalidity allowance for incapacity beginning:
● under age 35 or before 5 July 1948 age 35-44
● age 45-59 (men) or 45-54 (women) 17
£3.70
£2.30
£1.15