Benefits for Students in Scotland Handbook 2020/21Part 1: Benefits and tax creditsChapter 7: Income support 4. Amount of benefit
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4. Amount of benefit
The amount of income support (IS) you get depends on your and your partner’s circumstances. The amount also depends on your income and capital. Go through the following steps to work out the amount of IS to which you are entitled.
Step one: capital
If your capital is over £16,000, you cannot get IS (see here). Some kinds of capital are ignored. For details, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook.
Step two: work out your applicable amount
This is an amount for basic weekly needs. It is made up of:
    •personal allowances (see here);
    •premiums (see here);
    •housing costs (see here).
Step three: work out your weekly income
Chapter 17 explains how your loan, grant or other income is taken into account and how to work out your weekly income.
Step four: deduct weekly income from applicable amount
If your income is less than your applicable amount, IS equals the difference between the two.
If your income is the same as or more than your applicable amount, you cannot get IS. You may be able to claim again (see here) if your income goes down – eg, during the long vacation.
 
Example
Nora is 23 and a full-time, second-year undergraduate student and a lone parent of Penny, aged two. She gets a student loan of £6,750, plus an independent students’ bursary of £1,000, £1,305 lone parents’ grant and £1,215 for childcare. Her only other income is child benefit of £21.05 a week, child tax credit (CTC) of £54.32 a week, and personal independence payment (PIP) of £59.70 a week.
During the academic year September 2020 to June 2021:
Step one Nora has no savings or capital.
Step two Her applicable amount is:
Personal allowance for herself £74.35
Disability premium £34.95
Severe disability premium £66.95
Total applicable amount £176.25
Step three Her weekly income is:
Loan £158.02
The childcare grant and lone parents’ grant are disregarded. Her loan (less certain disregards) is divided over the 42 weeks of the academic year (see Chapter 17), and a further £10 disregarded. Child benefit, CTC and PIP are disregarded.
Step four Her income is £18.23 below her applicable amount, so she can get IS of £18.23 a week from September 2020 to June 2021.
 
During the long vacation from June 2021 to September 2021:
Step two At 2020/21 rates, Nora’s applicable amount is £176.25 (as above).
Step three Her weekly income for IS purposes from the end of June 2021 to the beginning of September 2021 is nil. This is because her loan only counts as income during the academic year. Child benefit, CTC and PIP are disregarded.
Step four From the end of June 2021 to the beginning of September 2021 her weekly IS is £176.25. Nora’s IS should increase from the end of June.
Applicable amount
Work out your applicable amount by adding together your personal allowances, premiums and eligible housing costs. Benefit rates are uprated in April each year. It is usually possible to find out the new rates from the beginning of December. Check the DWP website at gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions for a press release on social security uprating. The amounts in this Handbook are from April 2021.
Personal allowance
Your personal allowance is made up of the following.1Sch 2 para 1 IS Regs
    •One personal allowance at either the single, lone parent or couple rate depending on your situation. The amount depends on your age.
Circumstances
£ per week
Conditions
Single
Under 25
59.20
No special conditions.
25 or over
74.70
No special conditions.
Lone parent
Under 18
59.20
No special conditions.
18 or over
74.70
No special conditions.
Couple
Both aged 16–17 (certain cases)
89.45
You get this rate if:
– you or your partner are responsible for a child; or
– you and your partner would be eligible for IS or income-related employment and support allowance (ESA) if you were single; or
– your partner is eligible for income-based jobseeker’s allowance (JSA) or severe hardship payments of JSA.
Both aged 16–17 (everyone else)
59.20
For everyone else who cannot get the higher rate.
One aged 16–17, one 18 or over
117.40
The younger partner:
– is eligible for IS or income-related ESA, or would be if s/he were single; or
– is eligible for income-based JSA; or
– is entitled to severe hardship payments of JSA.
One aged 16–17, one 18–24
59.20
For those who are not eligible for the rate above.
One aged 16–17, one 25 or over
74.70
For those who are not eligible for the rate above.
Both aged 18 or over
117.40
No special conditions.
 
1     Sch 2 para 1 IS Regs »
Premiums
Qualifying for premiums depends on your circumstances.
You can qualify for either one, but not both, of the following.
    •Disability premium of £35.10 (£50.05 for a couple). You get a disability premium if you get:1Sch 2 paras 11 and 12 IS Regs
      ◦disability living allowance (DLA);
      ◦PIP;
      ◦long-term incapacity benefit (IB);
      ◦severe disablement allowance;
      ◦working tax credit with a disabled worker or severe disability element;
      ◦war pensioner’s mobility supplement;
      ◦constant attendance allowance;
      ◦exceptionally severe disablement allowance.
You also qualify if:
    ◦you are certified as severely sight impaired or blind, and for 28 weeks after coming off the register; or
    ◦you are terminally ill and have been entitled to statutory sick pay for at least 196 days; or
    ◦you have been receiving a disability premium since before October 2008 because of incapacity for work.
If you are the IS claimant and you have a partner, you get the disability premium if s/he gets any of the qualifying benefits or is blind.
    •Pensioner premium of £152.90 for couples. People who have reached pension age claim pension credit (see here) rather than IS. However, you get a pensioner premium if you are under this age and getting IS and you have a partner who has reached this age.2Sch 2 paras 9, 9A and 10 IS Regs
In addition, you can qualify for any, or all, of the following.3Sch 2 para 6 IS Regs
    •Carer premium of £37.70. You get a carer premium if you are entitled to carer’s allowance (CA) (see here). If you are entitled to CA but not paid it because it overlaps with another benefit (eg, IB), you still qualify for a carer premium. You get two carer premiums if both you and your partner qualify.
    •Enhanced disability premium for an adult of £17.20 (£24.60 for a couple). You get this premium if you get the highest rate of the DLA care component or the enhanced rate of the PIP daily living component.4Sch 2 paras 13A and 15(8) IS Regs
    •Severe disability premium of £67.30. This is a premium for severely disabled people who live alone, or can be treated as living alone. You qualify for this premium if you get the middle or highest rate of the DLA care component, or the standard or enhanced rate of the PIP daily living component, and no one gets CA for looking after you. You do not get it if you live with another person aged 18 or over (eg, a friend or parent), unless s/he is separately liable for rent, or you only share a bathroom or hallway, or in some other circumstances.5Sch 2 para 13 IS Regs See CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook for details. If you have a partner, you do not qualify unless s/he also qualifies in her/his own right or is severely sight impaired or blind. If you both qualify, you get two premiums.
 
1     Sch 2 paras 11 and 12 IS Regs »
2     Sch 2 paras 9, 9A and 10 IS Regs »
3     Sch 2 para 6 IS Regs »
4     Sch 2 paras 13A and 15(8) IS Regs »
5     Sch 2 para 13 IS Regs »
Housing costs
IS can include amounts for certain service charges if you own your home.
If you own your own home and get IS, you may be able to get a loan from the DWP to help with the cost of your mortgage interest payments,1Reg 3 LMI Regs repayable when you sell your home or on your death. Payments are usually made directly to your mortgage lender. Usually help only starts once you have been getting IS for 39 weeks, although there are some exceptions to this. Note: these loans are not part of your IS.
Normally you have to live in the home you own to get a loan for mortgage interest, but there are exceptions for full-time students (and some others). You can still get a loan for mortgage interest if you have moved elsewhere to study but are not paying rent or mortgage at the term-time address. If you pay for both places, you can get a loan for both if you are a couple and it is unavoidable that you live in two separate homes. Otherwise, you can get a loan if you are away from your home temporarily and have not let it out and are not likely to be away for more than 52 weeks.2Sch 3 para 4 LMI Regs
You must claim universal credit (see Chapter 11), or, in some cases, housing benefit (see Chapter 6) for help with your rent.
For more details, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook.
 
1     Reg 3 LMI Regs  »
2     Sch 3 para 4 LMI Regs »