Case transfer guide: Attendance Allowance to Pension Age Disability Payment

A new benefit called Pension Age Disability Payment is replacing Attendance Allowance for all adults in Scotland. This is happening as part of Scottish devolution.

A client’s award will move to Pension Age Disability Payment if they:

• already get Attendance Allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
• live in Scotland

Clients do not need to do anything to start the move to Pension Age Disability Payment. They do not need to make a new application for Pension Age Disability Payment. Their Attendance Allowance will move to Pension Age Disability Payment automatically.

Social Security Scotland have now selected all cases expected to move from Attendance Allowance to Pension Age Disability Payment.

If you are supporting someone on Attendance Allowance and they have not had a letter about their benefit moving, ask them to contact Social Security Scotland.

The process started in February 2025. It will take until the end of 2025 to move everyone’s benefit to Pension Age Disability Payment.

Find out more about what will happen with a client’s benefit during the move to Pension Age Disability Payment in the section ‘What happens during the move’.

Clients will keep getting their regular Attendance Allowance payments from DWP until their benefit moves. There will be no gap in their entitlement.

Their Pension Age Disability Payment might be paid one working day later than their Attendance Allowance. If this is the case, we'll let clients know in advance so they can make any necessary financial plans.

How clients are paid

Social Security Scotland will pay Pension Age Disability Payment the same way as clients get their Attendance Allowance. This may be into a bank account or a different way of paying they’ve agreed with DWP.

Payment rates

Pension Age Disability Payment is paid at 2 different rates, lower and higher. The amount you get depends on your care needs.

Lower rate is £73.90 a week. It’s for people who need help or supervision during the day or night.

Higher rate is £110.40 a week. It’s for people who need help or supervision during the day and night.

When a clients Pension Age Disability Payment starts, they’ll get the same amount that they got for Attendance Allowance.

Clients may be paid more if their benefit starts moving because they’ve reported a terminal illness to DWP. Read more about Pension Age Disability payments if you have a terminal illness in the section ‘If a client is diagnosed with a terminal illness’.

If a client is overpaid

A client may be overpaid Pension Age Disability Payment if:

• their circumstances change and they do not tell Social Security Scotland
• they or Social Security Scotland make a mistake

If the client or the person acting for them is paid too much, Social Security Scotland may:

• take money back from them
• reduce or stop their payments

Social Security Scotland will look at cases of overpayment on an individual basis and will always contact the client before stopping payments. Find out more about benefit overpayments.

We can only make payments for any Social Security Scotland award into one bank account per client. DWP will give us details of the bank account their Attendance Allowance was paid into.

If the client has used a different bank account for any other Social Security Scotland payments, we’ll call and then write to the client and find out which one they want us to use. If we cannot get confirmation from the client, we’ll default to the bank account their Attendance Allowance was paid into. In future we’ll pay any other Social Security Scotland award into this account.

Any changes made by us will not affect where they receive any other benefits from DWP.

When their Pension Age Disability Payment starts, the client will see a reference in their bank statement based on their national insurance number and ’SSSPADP’ for Pension Age Disability Payment.

The client will not be getting paid Attendance Allowance if they’re staying in legal detention.

However, if the client’s entitled to it, they’ll get paid Pension Age Disability Payment for 28 days after their benefit moves across to Social Security Scotland.

If they’re still in legal detention 28 days after their benefit has completed the move, their payments from Social Security Scotland will stop.

How long the move will take

When a client’s benefit starts moving, it will take 8 to 12 weeks to complete the move to Pension Age Disability Payment.

Read more about how long the move will take for clients with a terminal illness in the section below ‘If a client is newly diagnosed with a terminal illness’.

Before the move

When it's time for the client’s benefit to move, DWP send them a letter. This will tell them:

• their benefit has started moving to Social Security Scotland
• when their Attendance Allowance award will end

When their benefit starts moving, Social Security Scotland will send them an introduction letter called 'Your Attendance Allowance is moving to Social Security Scotland'. The letter will tell them:

• what happens during the move
• when their Pension Age Disability Payment award will start
• if they get Universal Credit, they need to tell them about the move (read more in the section ‘If a client gets Universal Credit’)

This letter will go to the address that DWP has. If the client thinks DWP have the wrong information for them, they need to contact DWP’s Disability Service Centre.

A client’s Pension Age Disability Payment award starts the day after their Attendance Allowance award ends.

During the move

During the move, DWP will:

• continue to manage the client’s Attendance Allowance
• send Social Security Scotland information about the client’s Attendance Allowance

During the move, Social Security Scotland may need to call or write to the client to confirm details like:

• their address
• their bank account
• if they normally live in Scotland

If Social Security Scotland does need to call the client, they’ll call from this number: 0800 182 2222. DWP will carry on paying their Attendance Allowance until Social Security Scotland start paying them Pension Age Disability Payment.

The client’s Attendance Allowance might be paid one working day later than their DLA. If this is the case, we'll let the client know in advance so they can make any necessary financial plans.

After the move

Social Security Scotland will send the client another letter when the move is complete. This letter is called ‘Your Attendance Allowance has moved to Social Security Scotland’. This letter will tell the client:

• that their Attendance Allowance has completed the move to Pension Age Disability Payment
• how much Pension Age Disability Payment they’ll get
• what date their Attendance Allowance ends
• what date their Pension Age Disability Payment starts

DWP will manage the client’s benefit and payments until the move to Pension Age Disability Payment is complete.

If the client’s Attendance Allowance award is due to be renewed before their benefit starts moving, DWP will contact them.

The client should keep contacting DWP about their renewal until their benefit has moved to Social Security Scotland.

The client does not need to do anything. DWP will continue to manage and pay the client’s benefit.

The client’s benefit will automatically move to Pension Age Disability Payment under Special Rules for Terminal Illness sometime before December 2025.

When their Attendance Allowance starts moving, it will complete the move to Pension Age Disability Payment in 8 to 12 weeks.

Social Security Scotland will not review their Pension Age Disability Payment, unless the client asks them to.

Payments

Once the client’s benefit move is complete, Social Security Scotland will continue to pay them at the same frequency as DWP.

When the client’s Pension Age Disability Payment starts, they’ll get the same rate of payment that they got for Attendance Allowance.

Before you advise a client to apply under special rules, read our factsheet for clinicians.

If a client is newly diagnosed with a terminal illness, the client or their healthcare practitioner needs to tell DWP as soon as they can.

The client can ask their doctor or healthcare practitioner to send DWP a Benefits Assessment under Special Rules in Scotland (BASRiS) form.

If they do not have a BASRiS form, DWP will still accept any one of the following:

• SR1 form
• DS1500 form
• a letter confirming that the client has a terminal illness

If the client already has one of these documents, they can send it to DWP themselves. Find out how to contact DWP’s Disability Service Centre.

DWP will review the client’s award

When DWP get confirmation or a terminal illness diagnosis, they will review the client’s award under their Special Rules for End of Life.

If the client is awarded under DWP’s special rules, they’ll remain with DWP until their benefit completes the move to Pension Age Disability Payment. The client’s benefit will move to Pension Age Disability Payment sometime before December 2025.

If DWP do not award the client under special rules

The client may still be able to get Pension Age Disability Payment under Social Security Scotland’s Special Rules for Terminal Illness. This is because the definition of terminal illness in Scotland is different to the rest of the UK. Find out more about what Social Security Scotland means by terminal illness.

If DWP do not award the client under their special rules, the client’s benefit will automatically start moving to Pension Age Disability Payment. The client’s benefit will move to Pension Age Disability Payment as quickly as possible.

Social Security Scotland will then review the client’s award under Scottish Special Rules for Terminal Illness.

If the client is awarded under Scottish rules, Social Security Scotland will typically pay them from the date they became eligible. This will typically be a date in the past. This makes sure the client gets the full award amount that they’re entitled to, from the date they were entitled to it.

The client will automatically get any additional payments they’re due. They do not need to do anything. Social Security Scotland will send the client a letter detailing any additional payments they’re due and how much these will be.

Pension Age Disability Payment affects other benefits in the same way as Attendance Allowance.

If the client gets Universal Credit

The client needs to tell Universal Credit about the move. This will make sure that they stay in payment.

To update their Universal Credit account, the client needs to either:

• sign in to their Universal Credit account
• call the Universal Credit helpline on 0800 328 5644

If the client gets other benefits from DWP

The move from Attendance Allowance to Pension Age Disability Payment should not affect other benefits the client may get from DWP including:

• Employment and Support Allowance
• Carer’s Allowance
• Income Support
• Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Pension Credit

If the client gets any of these benefits, they do not need to tell DWP that their Attendance Allowance is moving to Pension Age Disability Payment.

We’ll write to the client and ask them to confirm which details are correct. If the client does not respond then we’ll default to the details that DWP gave us.

Changes the client needs to report

The changes the client needs to report include changes to their:

• needs
• health
• disability
• condition
• personal details, like their address or bank account

If the client is newly diagnosed with a terminal illness, the process is different. The section ‘If a client is diagnosed with a terminal illness’ explains more about this.

If something changes before or during the move

The client must tell DWP if their details or circumstances change before they get a letter called ‘Your Attendance Allowance has moved to Social Security Scotland’.

DWP will review the client’s award

After the client has told DWP about the change, DWP will:

• contact the client if they need to send any information
• make a decision about the client’s Attendance Allowance award
• continue to manage the client’s benefit until the move is complete

The client’s benefit will move to Pension Age Disability Payment sometime before December 2025. When their benefit starts moving, it will take 8 to 12 weeks to complete the move to Pension Age Disability Payment.

The client must tell Social Security Scotland if their details or circumstances change once they’ve got a letter called ‘Your Attendance Allowance has moved to Social Security Scotland’.

Social Security Scotland will make a decision about any changes to the client’s Pension Age Disability Payment award.

Find out how to tell Social Security Scotland about a change.

After the death of the client is confirmed with DWP, DWP will tell us and the transfer will be stopped. We’ll write to the person who reported the death to DWP to tell them that we have stopped the transfer. If DWP do not tell us who reported the death, we’ll send this letter to the client’s address

The client should tell DWP about any other changes that happen during the transfer, such as a change of address or name. DWP will then tell us about this change so we can update the client’s record.

A client’s Attendance Allowance will not automatically move to Pension Age Disability Payment if they live outside the UK.

The client can contact DWP and ask them to move their benefit to Pension Age Disability Payment if both of the following apply:

• the client lives in the EU, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Switzerland or Gibraltar
• the client has a ‘genuine and sufficient link’ to Scotland

A genuine and sufficient link is where a client does not live in Scotland but has a link to Scotland. For example, they have spent a significant part of their life in Scotland.

Find out more if the client is currently living in the EU, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Switzerland or Gibraltar.

We’ll stop the client’s benefit moving if they:

• do not normally live in Scotland
• live outside the United Kingdom in an eligible country and do not have a genuine and sufficient link to Scotland
• have died
• lose their entitlement to Attendance Allowance

If the client is still eligible for Attendance Allowance, they will continue to get Attendance Allowance from DWP.

If the client’s benefit stops when it should not, call DWP to make sure the client will still get Attendance Allowance.

When the client’s benefit moves from Attendance Allowance to Pension Age Disability Payment, they’ll usually keep getting the same amount.

The client might disagree with things like:

• how much they’re going to be paid
• the date their payments will start

If the client thinks their Pension Age Disability Payment is wrong, they can ask Social Security Scotland to look at their benefit again. This is called a ‘re-determination’. A client can only ask for a re-determination once they’ve got a letter called ‘Your Attendance Allowance has moved to Social Security Scotland’.

Client’s have the right to appeal Social Security Scotland’s re-determination decision about their Pension Age Disability Payment award.

Find out more about what re-determinations and appeals are.

Clients cannot withdraw their re-determination request once they’ve made it. This is because Social Security Scotland is legally required to complete the re-determination process and give the client a new decision.

How to request a re-determination or appeal

Find out more about how to request a re-determination or appeal.

DWP will tell us about the client’s preferences.

If the client has asked DWP to send them letters in braille or large print, we will send them letters in this format automatically.

If the client has asked DWP to send them letters in another format (such as audio recording or easy read), we’ll send letters in this format too. However it is not done automatically and can take a little longer.

We’ll send both a letter in plain English and a letter in the preferred language or format.

We can usually provide information between 2 and 4 working days in these languages:

• Polish
• Russian
• Romanian
• Arabic
• Urdu
• French

For some of our letters, it may take longer.

We can also provide information in other languages but it may take longer.

We can provide information in these formats:

• large print
• easy read
• braille
• audio recording

We can provide these services for clients who need them:

• British Sign Language interpretation
• text relay
• electronic note takers
• Deafblind interpreters
• communicator guide with Deafblind people
• lipspeakers
• palantypists

There are different ways to act on behalf of someone, including as:

• an appointee
• a third party representative

Appointees

An appointee is someone who has legal powers to act on behalf of someone who cannot manage their own affairs. This could be as a:

• Power of Attorney
• Legal Guardian
• Deputy

Find out more about being an appointee.

If you’re already an appointee

If DWP appointed you to act for someone who cannot manage their Attendance Allowance, you can continue to act for them for their Pension Age Disability Payment.

DWP will tell Social Security Scotland when the client’s benefit has moved from DWP to Social Security Scotland.

Social Security Scotland may contact you to review your role as an appointee after the client’s benefit has moved. Social Security Scotland may need to review your role because Scotland’s laws are different from the rest of the UK. They will not need to do this if you’re already the person’s appointee for a different Social Security Scotland benefit.

Your responsibilities as an appointee

Managing money

Keep any money you receive from Social Security Scotland separate from your own money. Make sure nobody else can access it.

You may want to keep records to keep track of payments and spending.

You should always spend the money in ways that benefit the person you’re acting for.

Making decisions

When you make decisions for them, think about their:

• needs
• past and present wishes
• feelings

Communicating

If you have difficulty communicating with the person you’re acting for because of their disability, contact Social Security Scotland to get extra support from an advocate.

Third party representatives

A third party representative could be:

• an interpreter
• a healthcare professional
• a family member or friend
• an organisation

They can help out with things like:

• filling in forms
• making phone calls
• checking progress of an application
• telling Social Security Scotland about a change

Third party representatives do not have legal powers to make decisions for someone else.

If you’re already a third party representative

If you’ve helped a person with their Attendance Allowance in the past, Social Security Scotland will not find out about this from DWP.

Instead, the person you’re helping will need to contact Social Security Scotland to tell them that:

• you have been helping them
• they want you to carry on helping them

Your responsibilities as a third party representative

Social Security Scotland are not allowed to share some kinds of information with a third party representative, such as:

• bank account details
• details about the person’s condition

You can only act in this role for up to 3 months, unless the person gives permission for you to carry on for longer.

In some circumstances, if Social Security Scotland review a client’s award and the award increases, they’ll backdate that award.

Backdating means Social Security Scotland will change the date of the client’s higher award entitlement to a date in the past. This means the client will get the full award amount they’re entitled to, from the date they’re entitled to it.

Read more about when awards are backdated in the sections ‘If a client is diagnosed with a terminal illness’.

For independent support and advice, clients can contact Citizens Advice Scotland. Either:

• call them free on 0800 028 1456
• go to their website

If a client needs extra support with disability benefits, they can contact VoiceAbility. They’re independent from Social Security Scotland.

An advocate will listen to the client and try to understand their point of view and what the client wants to happen. They can help client’s apply for benefits and make decisions. They’ll still make any final decisions.

To contact VoiceAbility:

• call them free on 0300 303 1660
• visit their website at voiceability.org
• email SocialSecurityAdvocacy@voiceability.org

Clients can also ask Social Security Scotland to refer them to VoiceAbility.