Carer's Allowance: who can claim and how to apply
By CareFinder Team · Published 2026-09-22 · Last reviewed 2026-09-22
Carer's Allowance is paid to people who spend at least 35 hours a week caring for someone who gets a qualifying disability benefit, such as Attendance Allowance or the daily living part of PIP. The carer must be 16 or over, earn no more than the weekly earnings limit after deductions, and not be in full-time education. Scotland pays Carer Support Payment instead.
Carer's Allowance is the main benefit for unpaid carers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. You can claim it if you spend at least 35 hours a week caring for someone who receives a qualifying disability benefit, you earn under the weekly earnings limit, and you are not in full-time education. In Scotland the same support is paid as Carer Support Payment by Social Security Scotland.
It is not a wage and it is not generous, but it is worth claiming: it brings National Insurance credits, it can unlock extra amounts in Universal Credit and Pension Credit, and it can sometimes be backdated by many months. It can also, in one specific situation, leave a household worse off — which is why it is worth reading the section on other benefits before you apply.
Who can claim Carer's Allowance?
You must meet all of these conditions:
- You are 16 or over.
- You spend at least 35 hours a week caring for one person.
- Your earnings are no more than £204 a week after tax, National Insurance and allowable expenses (the 2026/27 limit, from 6 April 2026).
- You are not in full-time education and not studying for 21 hours a week or more.
- You normally live in England or Wales, and have been in England, Scotland or Wales for at least two of the last three years.
The current conditions and the up-to-date earnings figure are set out on the GOV.UK eligibility page.
What counts towards the 35 hours
The 35 hours is not limited to hands-on personal care. GOV.UK counts helping with washing and cooking, taking the person to appointments, and helping with household jobs such as shopping and managing bills. Time spent supervising someone who cannot safely be left alone counts too. You do not have to live with them, and you do not have to be related to them.
The hours must be for one person. If you care for two people, you cannot add the hours together to reach 35 in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.
Which benefit the person you care for must get
They must already receive one of the qualifying disability benefits, at the right rate. These include:
- Attendance Allowance, or Pension Age Disability Payment in Scotland
- The daily living component of Personal Independence Payment
- The daily living component of Adult Disability Payment in Scotland
- Disability Living Allowance, at the middle or highest care rate
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Constant Attendance Allowance paid with a War Disablement Pension or Industrial Injuries scheme, at or above the normal maximum rate
If they have no disability benefit yet, that claim comes first. Nobody can get Carer's Allowance for looking after a person who does not hold one of these awards.
How much is it, and how is it paid?
Carer's Allowance is £86.45 a week in the 2026/27 tax year. You can choose to be paid weekly in advance or every four weeks. It is not means-tested on savings or on a partner's income, but it is taxable, so it counts as part of your income if you pay tax.
Each week you receive it you are also credited with Class 1 National Insurance credits, which protect your State Pension record and can help you qualify for some other benefits. Getting Carer's Allowance also means the benefit cap does not apply to your household.
Only one person can be paid Carer's Allowance for looking after the same disabled person, even if two people share the caring equally.
What does the earnings limit actually mean?
The limit is a cliff edge, not a taper: earn £1 over it in a week and you lose the whole week's payment. That is why it pays to work out your earnings properly rather than guessing from your gross pay.
You can deduct from your gross earnings:
- Income tax and National Insurance
- Half of what you pay into an occupational or personal pension
- Payments to someone (not a close relative) to look after the disabled person or a child under 16 while you work, up to half your remaining earnings
- Expenses incurred wholly and exclusively for the business, if you are self-employed
Occupational and personal pensions you receive are not earnings, so a works pension does not count against the limit. If your pay varies, the decision maker can average it over your normal cycle of work.
Tell the Carer's Allowance Unit straight away about a pay rise, a bonus or extra shifts. Overpayments caused by unnoticed earnings have been the single biggest source of carer debt, and the rules themselves are under review: the Department for Work and Pensions ran a call for evidence on Carer's Allowance in the summer of 2026, looking at whether to replace the cliff edge with a taper. Any change would be announced on GOV.UK.
Could claiming leave the household worse off?
Sometimes, yes — and this is the trap families most often miss.
If the person you care for lives alone and receives a severe disability premium with a means-tested benefit, or the severe disability addition in Pension Credit, that extra money stops as soon as Carer's Allowance is paid for them. The premium can be worth more than the Carer's Allowance itself, so the household can end up down overall. Add up both sides before you claim, and get an adviser to check the figures.
Other interactions to know about:
- Universal Credit. Your Universal Credit is reduced pound for pound by the Carer's Allowance, but you may qualify for the carer element, which you can get even if you never claim Carer's Allowance.
- State Pension. Carer's Allowance and the State Pension are overlapping benefits, so you cannot usually be paid both in full. If your pension is the same or higher, you get no Carer's Allowance — but you may be given an "underlying entitlement", which can increase Pension Credit or Housing Benefit. It is still worth applying.
- Council Tax. A discount or reduction the disabled person receives may change, so check with the council.
Citizens Advice, Carers UK and Age UK all run free benefit checks. This article is general information; before you claim, have someone run the numbers for your own household.
How do you claim, step by step?
- Check the disability benefit is already in payment, and note the date of the award letter.
- Gather your National Insurance number, bank details, a recent payslip or accounts, and course details if you study.
- Gather the other person's date of birth, address and National Insurance number.
- Apply online through the service linked from GOV.UK's claim page, or ring the Carer's Allowance Unit for a paper form.
- Ask for backdating on the form where it asks when you want the payments to start.
- Tell the person you care for that you have claimed, so they can report it and avoid an overpayment of their own.
Backdating: the point most people miss
A claim can normally be backdated by up to three months, and you do not have to give a reason. But if the person you care for has just been awarded their disability benefit, and you claim within three months of that decision, your Carer's Allowance can be backdated to the start of their award — which may be far more than three months, because disability benefit decisions often take months to arrive.
If your claim is refused and you think the decision is wrong, ask for a mandatory reconsideration within one month, then appeal if needed.
What if you are in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland?
| Where you live | What to claim | Who pays it |
|---|---|---|
| England | Carer's Allowance | DWP |
| Wales | Carer's Allowance | DWP |
| Scotland | Carer Support Payment | Social Security Scotland |
| Northern Ireland | Carer's Allowance | Department for Communities |
In Scotland, Carer Support Payment has replaced Carer's Allowance. The core rules mirror the rest of the UK — 35 hours a week, a qualifying disability benefit, the same weekly rate — but more students can qualify, and payments include the Scottish Carer Supplement of £11.70 a week (which replaced Carer's Allowance Supplement) and, where you care for more than one person, Carer Additional Person Payment of £10.40 a week. If you move to or from Scotland, report it: a Carer's Allowance award stops 13 weeks after you move north, and you need a fresh claim if you move south.
Wales follows the England rules exactly. In Northern Ireland the benefit keeps the name Carer's Allowance and the same rates, but it is run by the Department for Communities and claimed through nidirect, online or on form DS700.
What happens if they go into hospital or a care home?
Breaks are allowed, within limits. Once you have been caring for 22 of the past 26 weeks you can take up to four weeks off in any 26-week period — a holiday, for instance — and keep being paid. Payments stop altogether once your breaks add up to more than 12 weeks in 26. Carers UK sets out the break rules in detail.
If the person you care for goes into hospital, their disability benefit usually stops after four weeks, and your Carer's Allowance ends with it, though a longer period is possible in some circumstances.
A permanent move into a care home is the harder case. If the council pays for the placement, Attendance Allowance stops, and without it there is no Carer's Allowance. If the person funds their own fees, Attendance Allowance continues — and you can keep claiming only if you genuinely still give 35 hours of care a week, which some family carers do through daily visits, laundry, appointments and managing money. Report the move to the Carer's Allowance Unit or Social Security Scotland either way; do not wait to see what happens.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get Carer's Allowance if I work?
Yes, as long as your earnings after allowable deductions stay at or below the weekly limit and you still provide 35 hours of care a week. Because the limit is a cliff edge rather than a taper, one extra shift can cost a full week's payment, so keep a close eye on overtime and bonuses.
Can I claim if I already get the State Pension?
You can apply, but the two benefits overlap, so a full State Pension usually means no Carer's Allowance is actually paid. Applying is still worthwhile: an underlying entitlement can increase Pension Credit through the carer addition, and it puts your caring role on record.
Do I have to live with the person I care for?
No. There is no rule about living together, being related, or being married. The test is the 35 hours of care a week and their qualifying disability benefit.
Can two people share Carer's Allowance for the same person?
No. Only one person can be paid for caring for a particular individual, and you cannot split the payment. A second carer may be able to claim Carer's Credit instead, which protects their National Insurance record for 20 or more hours of care a week.
What if I care for two people for 20 hours each?
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the hours cannot be added together, so you would not qualify for either person. In Scotland, Carer Support Payment includes an extra amount for caring for more than one person, so check the rules on mygov.scot.
Key takeaways
- Carer's Allowance needs 35 hours of care a week for someone who already gets a qualifying disability benefit, and earnings at or below the weekly limit after deductions.
- It is £86.45 a week in 2026/27, taxable, and comes with National Insurance credits.
- The earnings limit is a cliff edge — report every change in pay straight away to avoid an overpayment.
- Claiming can stop a severe disability premium or Pension Credit severe disability addition for the person you care for; check both sides first.
- Claim within three months of their disability benefit decision and your payments can be backdated to the start of that award.
- Scotland pays Carer Support Payment instead; Northern Ireland runs its own Carer's Allowance through the Department for Communities.