Terminal illness and Carer Support Payment

Where a carer, or the person they care for is terminally ill this can affect the eligibility criteria and benefit rules which apply in Carer Support Payment.

There is no separate application form or process for people applying for Carer Support Payment who are terminally ill, or for people caring for someone who is terminally ill. Clients should apply in the standard way. 

The application form does not include a question asking if a carer or cared for person is terminally ill, due to the complexity of this question and the need to protect clients from harmful information. Clients will find out about the SRTI rules for Carer Support Payment:

• if they fail the ‘past presence test’.
  • If they or the person they care for are terminally ill and have been awarded a disability benefit under SRTI from Social Security Scotland, they will be automatically exempt from the past presence test and awarded Carer Support Payment.
  • If they or the person they care for are terminally ill and have been awarded a disability benefit under SREL from the DWP or NIDfC they will not be automatically exempt from the past presence test because we will not be able to see this information on Social Security Scotland systems or Insight. They will be  sent a letter explaining that they have failed the past presence test but that they could be exempt from the test  for a number of reasons, including if they or the person they care for are terminally ill and have been awarded a disability benefit under SREL. They will then be asked to provide evidence of this.
• through information regarding the option to change payment cycles via the Carer Support Payment application form and the pre-application guidance on mygov.scot
• through information on the option to change payment cycles via the Carer Support Payment award letter.

If the client, or the person they care for is terminally ill, the following Carer Support Payment rules are different:

• normally people would need to have been 'present' in the Common Travel Area for 26 out of the past 52 weeks to get support (this is known as the ‘past presence test’). Clients do not have to meet this ‘past presence test’ if they, or the person they care for is terminally ill
• normally Carer Support Payment is paid four weekly in arrears as standard. Clients should be given a choice as to whether they’d prefer to have their CSP paid weekly in advance instead of four weekly in arrears if they, or the person they care for, is terminally ill

The effect on Carer Support Payment of terminal illness is the same whether it is the Carer Support Payment client – the carer – or the person they care for who is terminally ill. This is to ensure carers can access support more quickly if they are terminally ill and that carers are treated consistently with the people they are caring for.

All other eligibility requirements and benefit rules, including the requirement to be providing 35 hours of care per week, apply to those who are terminally ill, or caring for a terminally ill person, in the same way as other carers.