Child Disability Payment decision making guide

Date the application is to be treated as made

If the individual meets all of the entitlement criteria on the day part 2 of their application is received by Social Security Scotland, then their application is treated as made on that date (CDP regs, reg 24(1)(a)). This includes meeting the residence and presence rules, the age criteria and the backwards test in relation to the care and mobility components.

When an individual does not meet all of the eligibility criteria on the date Social Security Scotland receives their application, but they will do within the following 13 weeks, the date the application is treated as made will be the date within that 13 week period where all of the eligibility criteria are satisfied (CDP regs, reg 24(2)). These are referred to as pre-emptive applications.

Date of entitlement

Entitlement to CDP begins on whichever date is later, either the date on which the required data (part 1) is received by Social Security Scotland, or the date the individual meets all of the eligibility criteria (CDP regs, reg 24(2)(a) and (b)). This is provided that the individual returns a completed part 2 of the application within 6 weeks of the required data at part 1 being received (CDP regs, reg 24(4)).

The 6-week period will begin from the date Social Security Scotland receives the individual’s ‘required data’ (being the individual’s name and date of birth).

The date that an individual provides their full name and date of birth (the required data) should be clearly recorded, as this can influence when an individual becomes eligible for CDP.

In some instances, the required data may not be supplied on the same date an individual submits part 1 of the application. For example, if the individual requests that both part 1 and part 2 are sent out in paper format, the required data will have been provided by the individual in order to trigger the issue of a paper part 1 and part 2.

As long as the backwards test is satisfied the earliest date that entitlement can begin if part 2 of the application is returned after 6 weeks is the date on which Social Security Scotland receives part two of the application unless there is good cause as to why part 2 was not submitted within 6 weeks.

If Social Security Scotland does not accept the reasons for the late completion of part 2, the individual has the right to request a re-determination in relation to the start date of their CDP award.

Circumstances considered as good reason for the late completion of an application may include:

  • where the individual could not complete the application due to a disability or health condition resulting in them being hospitalised
  • a personal event, such as a bereavement, or some other major event or trauma
  • where the individual has contacted Social Security Scotland to request more time, for example, to liaise with welfare rights support or to access accessibility support through a translation service or interpreter.

This list is not exhaustive. The case manager should consider the circumstances of each case on its own merit in determining what is ‘good reason’.

Good reasons due to impact of a disability

Case managers should accept the reason given at face value, unless it is very late and the reason appears highly improbable, in which case they should make further enquiries.

Other scenarios which the case manager may consider to be good reason are:

  • technical issues in the digital portal preventing the individual from applying for CDP
  • when no application form is received by the individual after they requested it
  • when the actions of Social Security Scotland officials or the IT systems and processes prevent an individual from applying within the 6 week period.

In these scenarios both:

  • good reason for lateness should be accepted, as long as the individual has completed it as soon as reasonably practical once the issue was resolved
  • the entitlement to CDP should begin on the date the application was registered, where the individual satisfies the eligibility criteria (CDP regs, reg 24(4) and (6)).

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