Carer Support Payment - carers unable to backdate awards before 19 November 2023

Some carers will be unable to backdate their awards to a date before 19 November 2023 even if they apply within 13 weeks of a qualifying disability benefit decision where the qualifying benefit is backdated before 19 November 2023.

This applies to carers who are eligible for Carer Support Payment but would not have been eligible for Carer’s Allowance. This may happen because Carer Support Payment has different rules from Carer’s Allowance in relation to:

• full-time education
• residence requirements – the ‘past presence test’

Carers may contact Social Security Scotland if they are unsure if this applies to them.

Full-time education

Carers won’t be able to backdate their award to a date before 19 November 2023 if they wouldn’t have been eligible under Carer’s Allowance rules on full-time education. Carer’s Allowance is not available to anyone studying full-time or for 21 or more hours a week. Carers applying for Carer Support Payment will not be able to backdate their award to a period before 19 November 2023 during which they were in full-time education, or studying for 21 or more hours per week. Carers aged 16 to 19 studying full-time non-advanced education will not normally be eligible for either Carer’s Allowance or Carer Support Payment. Read the full-time education rules guidance for more information.

Residence requirements – the ‘past presence test'

Carers won’t be able to backdate their award to a date before 19 November 2023 if they wouldn’t have been eligible under Carer’s Allowance rules on ‘past presence’. To be eligible for Carer’s Allowance, carers need to have been ‘present’ in England, Scotland or Wales for 2 out of the past 3 years. We should check with the carer if they been present in England, Scotland or Wales throughout the 3 years before their chosen start date, or for at least 2 of the past 3 years. If they are unsure we should ask them about periods they have spent in other countries – where they were and how long they were there. If the periods they spent outside of England, Scotland or Wales total more than a year of the three years before their chosen start date they would not be eligible to backdate their award to a date before 19 November 2023.

If they were abroad in their capacity as a serving member of the armed forces, or living with someone who is, or in their capacity as a mariner, airman, or continental shelf worker, they count as having being present for this period.

Carers would not be eligible to backdate their award to a date before 19 November 2023 if they had not been ‘present’ in England, Scotland or Wales for 2 out of the past 3 years on their chosen start date.

Special rules for terminal illness and PPT

Carers who are awarded Carer Support Payment without having to meet the Carer Support Payment ‘past presence test’ on the basis that they, or the person they care for is terminally ill, would not be eligible to backdate their award to a date before 19 November 2023. This is because this rule doesn’t apply in Carer’s Allowance. More information on terminal illness rules for Carer Support Payment are in the DMG chapter on Special rules for terminal illness.

Carer Support Payment – Special backdating rules for roll-out

Carer Support Payment was rolled out across Scotland in phases. In the initial phase it opened for applications in Dundee City, Perth and Kinross, and the Western Isles on 20 November 2023. It was made available for new applications in further local authority areas as follows:

The general rules on backdating will apply to all carers making applications for Carer Support Payment. In addition to this, some groups of carers were able to apply for extended backdating, where they were living outside of the initial pilot areas.

This was to ensure that carers are not disadvantaged by living in an area where Carer Support Payment became available later. This is because Carer Support Payment eligibility criteria are different from Carer’s Allowance, and this means some carers will not be eligible for support until Carer Support Payment is available in their area.

The carers who were eligible for extended backdating are those who are:

• in full-time education so unable to get Carer’s Allowance, but would have been eligible under the full-time education rules for Carer Support Payment 
• did not meet rules around ‘past presence’ which apply in Carer’s Allowance, but would have been eligible under the ‘past presence’ rules which apply in Carer Support Payment (including exemptions from meeting the test where the person they care for has been exempted from meeting the test, and where they, or the person they care for is terminally ill) 

Carers in the situations outlined above were able to backdate their application as far as 19 November 2023 (when Carer Support Payment started), if they applied within 13 weeks of the benefit being available in their local authority area, or later if they have a good reason for doing so (Carer Support Payment amendment regulations, regulation 2(4)). Carers in these groups would not be able to backdate their award to a date before 19 November in any circumstances. The table below shows the 13 week deadline for applications for each of the phases of the roll out:

Carers would need to fulfil all other Carer Support Payment eligibility criteria for their chosen start date. Where they did not meet all other eligibility criteria on their chosen start date, Carer Support Payment can be awarded from the first point after this that they meet all other eligibility criteria.

Special backdating rules for carers eligible under new rules on education which began on 23 June 2024

As part of the national roll out of Carer Support Payment, a change to the education rules was introduced from 23 June 2024. This extended eligibility to a further small group of full-time students – those aged 16 to 19 in full-time non-advanced education with certain ‘exceptional circumstances’. These carers were eligible from 23 June 2024 and were able to apply once Carer Support Payment opens for applications in their area.

Special backdating rules also apply for this group so that carers living in later phases of the roll out do not lose out on support. Carers were able to backdate their award as far as 23 June 2024 where they applied within 13 weeks of the benefit being available in their local authority area, or later if they have a good reason for doing so (Carer Support Payment amendment regulations, regulation 2(4)). Carers in these groups would not be able to backdate their award to a date before 23 June 2024 in any circumstances. The table below shows the 13 week deadline for applications for each of the phases of the roll out:

*as set out above, carers may be able to apply after 13 weeks and still be eligible for extended backdating where they have a ‘good reason’ for not applying by the deadline

**this includes carers in phase 1 of the pilot as 24 June would be the first point at which carers in this new group could apply anywhere in Scotland, due to the change in the rules being introduced in June.