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Carer Support Payment

Who you should tell about Carer Support Payment

Last updated
9 Jun 2025

Carer Support Payment may affect some of:

  • your other benefits
  • the benefits the person you care for gets

If you have a partner and live with them, Carer Support Payment may affect some of their benefits as well. But their benefits or income do not affect your eligibility for Carer Support Payment. Or how much Carer Support Payment you can get.

Carer Support Payment affects other benefits in the same way as Carer’s Allowance.

The benefits the person you care for gets

If the person you care for gets a severe disability premium in their benefits, this will stop if you get Carer Support Payment. This applies to the following benefits: 

  • Income Support
  • income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
  • income-related Employment and Support Allowance
  • Pension Credit

Learn more about disability premiums at GOV.UK.

What you should do before you apply for Carer Support Payment

Before you apply for Carer Support Payment, discuss your application with the person you care for, if possible. Or with their representative if they have one. Explain how your application may affect their benefits. For example, their severe disability premium will stop.

They'll also need to let their local council know about your Carer Support Payment award if they get:

  • Housing Benefit
  • Council Tax Reduction

Housing Benefit

Your benefits

Social Security Scotland will let the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) know if you start getting Carer Support Payment.

You’ll need to let your local council know if you get:

  • Housing Benefit
  • Council Tax Reduction

Housing Benefit

If you’re employed and your income, including Carer Support Payment, goes above the personal tax allowance, you need to tell HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). You can: 

If you get Universal Credit

DWP will reduce your Universal Credit if you get Carer Support Payment. This is because DWP counts Carer Support Payment as income when they work out how much Universal Credit to pay.

You should get more money overall because DWP may pay you a Universal Credit carer element. This is an extra amount in Universal Credit. Also, because you’re a carer you should not have to meet any of the work requirements for Universal Credit.

Social Security Scotland will share information about your Carer Support Payment with DWP. You should still tell DWP about your Carer Support Payment.  

You can tell DWP about your Carer Support Payment award by:

If you or your partner get other income-related benefits

Carer Support Payment is also counted as income for these 4 benefits: 

  • Income Support
  • income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • income-related Employment and Support Allowance
  • Pension Credit

If you live with a partner, the standard amount you or your partner receive for those benefits will be reduced by the Carer Support Payment amount. But because you're a carer, a Carer Premium or Carer Addition will be added.

DWP cannot adjust your other benefits or your partner’s benefits straight away. This means DWP may overpay you or your partner and then ask for some money back. But you’ll usually be better off overall if you get Carer Support Payment and your income-related benefits.

Choose how to get your first Carer Support Payment

If you're awarded Carer Support Payment, you have 2 options for getting your first payment. You'll still get the same amount of money overall.

You can choose to get a reduced amount of money the first time you're paid Carer Support Payment. This means you and your partner will not need to pay any money back to DWP later.

Or you can choose to get the full amount the first time you’re paid Carer Support Payment. But DWP will ask you or your partner to pay them some money back.

The application form for Carer Support Payment asks if you’d like Social Security Scotland to reduce your first payment of Carer Support Payment so you and your partner do not have to pay money back to DWP.

If you live with a partner, discuss this with them before you apply for Carer Support Payment.

Carer's Allowance Supplement

Carer's Allowance Supplement is an extra payment for people in Scotland who get Carer Support Payment or Carer's Allowance on a particular date. Learn more about Carer's Allowance Supplement. 

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