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Funeral Support Payment

Who can apply and when

Last updated
1 Apr 2022

You can get a Funeral Support Payment if all of the following apply:

  • you live in Scotland
  • you or your partner are getting certain benefits or tax credits
  • the person who died lived in the UK
  • the funeral is being held in the UK or in some circumstances , another country 
  • you're applying after the person has died, until 6 months after the date of their funeral
  • you or your partner are responsible for the funeral costs
  • it's reasonable for you or your partner to accept responsibility for the funeral costs

Usually, it’s reasonable for the nearest relative of the person who died to accept responsibility for the funeral costs. A nearest relative could be a partner, child, parent or sibling. If you or your partner are not the nearest relative, you'll need to explain to us when you apply why you’ve accepted responsibility for the funeral costs. 

If you could not apply for the Funeral Support Payment within 6 months of the funeral taking place due to the disruption caused by coronavirus (COVID-19), we'll accept your application as on time. If you've received a backdated benefit you may also have longer to apply. Call Social Security Scotland on 0800 182 2222 for more information.

You might be able to get a different payment if you live in:

Benefits and tax credits you or your partner must get

You or your partner must get one or more of the following:

  • Child Tax Credit
  • Universal Credit (UC)
  • Income Support
  • Pension Credit
  • Working Tax Credit (disability or severe disability element)
  • Housing Benefit
  • income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA), not contribution-based JSA
  • income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), not contribution-based ESA

If you or your partner are waiting to hear about your application for one of these benefits, you can still apply for Funeral Support Payment. However, we'll only be able to let you know if you can get Funeral Support Payment once we know the outcome of your other benefit applications.

If you think you should be getting any of these benefits, you can find out more on GOV.UK. If you've received a backdated benefit or have been affected by COVID-19, you may have longer to apply. Call us on 0800 182 2222 for more information.

You may be able to get Funeral Support Payment if you get a benefit from a European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland. Call Social Security Scotland free on 0800 182 2222 for more information.

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