If you work
To get Carer Support Payment, your ‘take home pay’ cannot be more than £151 a week. This is about the same as £654 a month, or £7852 a year.
We'll explain how Social Security Scotland defines take home pay later on in this page. In summary, it's what's left over after you've paid tax, National Insurance and certain expenses.
Social Security Scotland will look at your earnings and expenses to make sure your take home pay is not more than £151 a week. They’ll do this when you apply for Carer Support Payment. They’ll also tell you how often they’ll review your earnings if you’re self-employed, or if your earnings change.
It’s OK if your take home pay is sometimes more than £151 a week. Social Security Scotland will work out how much your average take home pay is.
Payments that do not count as earnings
Some payments do not count towards your earnings. For example:
- payments from other benefits
- payments from pensions
- contributions towards your living or housing costs from someone you live with who is not a tenant or boarder
- the first £20 a week from someone boarding in your home
- 50% of any other payments you get from someone boarding in your home, including rent payments and contributions towards bills
- income tax refunds
- redundancy payments
Additional earnings
If you get additional earnings, Social Security Scotland will count these.
Additional earnings are income that does not usually show on a payslip or accounts every month. For example:
- tips, commissions or bonuses
- earnings from cash jobs
- retainers
- fostering fees
- expenses that are not directly for your work but your employer or your own business pays back to you, for example children’s school fees
- earnings from working while based abroad, if these can be brought back into the UK
- payment you get instead of working a notice period when you finish work (sometimes called 'payment in lieu of notice')
- holiday pay you get within 4 weeks of finishing a job
- payment you get instead of finishing an employment contract (sometimes called 'payment in lieu of remuneration')
- payment you get while on leave for maternity, paternity, adoption or sickness
- company shares
Expenses
If you tell Social Security Scotland about expenses you pay, they might be able to take these off your earnings.
Expenses they can take off your earnings include:
- 50% of any money you pay into a pension (occupational, private or both)
- childcare fees you pay so you can work (up to 50% of your take home pay)
- caring fees you pay for a disabled adult so you can work (up to 50% of your take home pay)
- work-related expenses you would not usually spend your own money on, and your employer does not pay back to you. For example, work travel, work clothes or phone calls
- self-employment business expenses, for example, heating, lighting or cleaning
Your take home pay
To work out your take home pay, Social Security Scotland adds up:
- your salary if you're an employee
- any income from self-employment
- any additional earnings you get, such as tips, bonuses or fostering fees
From that total, Social Security Scotland takes off:
- tax or National Insurance you pay
- relevant expenses you tell them about, such as caring fees you pay
- 50% of any money you pay into your pension
That calculation is what Social Security Scotland calls your take home pay.
Some income does not count towards your take home pay. For example, money you get from:
-
other benefits
-
pensions
-
some property rental income
Supporting information
When you apply for Carer Support Payment, Social Security Scotland might ask you to send supporting information about your earnings and expenses. This is to make sure they work out your take home pay correctly.
If you’re an employee
You will not need to send supporting information about your main earnings. Social Security Scotland get this information from HM Revenue & Customs.
If you have additional earnings, Social Security Scotland might ask you for supporting information about those.
If you pay expenses that Social Security Scotland could take off your earnings when they work out your take home pay, they’ll ask you for supporting information about those expenses.
If you’re self-employed
If you’ve been trading for more than 12 months and your recent earnings have not significantly changed, Social Security Scotland will ask you to send them your most recent Self Assessment tax return or accounts.
If you’ve been trading for less than 12 months, or your earnings have changed significantly within the last 12 months, Social Security Scotland will ask you to send them your monthly income and expenses.
You’ll also need to send details of any expenses you would like Social Security Scotland to take off your earnings when they work out your take home pay. You’ll need to provide supporting information about some of those expenses.
You’ll need to send this information again when Social Security Scotland reviews your earnings and expenses at agreed intervals when you’re getting Carer Support Payment. Social Security Scotland needs to review your earnings because they cannot get this information from HM Revenue & Customs.
If your employment or earnings change
You must tell Social Security Scotland if there are any changes to how much you earn. This could include:
- starting or finishing self-employment
- starting or finishing employment
- changes to any additional earnings you get
- changes to any relevant expenses you pay
- changes to your take home pay
Find out what happens if you have a change of circumstances.
Paying tax on Carer Support Payment
HMRC counts Carer Support Payment as income. If your income goes above the personal tax allowance, you may need to pay tax on your Carer Support Payment.
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