Students who can receive Carer Support Payment

Carers must be aged 16 or over to receive Carer Support Payment. Students can get Carer Support Payment if they meet all of the other eligibility criteria and are:

• aged 16 or over and studying less than 21 hours per week.
• aged 16 to 19 studying full-time ‘non-advanced’ education and have ‘exceptional circumstances’. This ‘exceptional circumstances’ rule was introduced from 23 June 2024 so carers in this group can’t be eligible from a date before this. Read more information in the Exceptional circumstances section.
• aged 16 to 19 studying full-time ‘advanced’ education.
• aged 20 or over, regardless of the level of study. Read about the definition of 'non-advanced' and 'advanced' education.