Children's Handbook Scotland | 2023/24Chapter 3: Children in hospital 2. Means-tested benefits
Back to previous
Newer version available

There is a newer version of this publication available:
Children's Handbook Scotland | 2024/25

Chapter illustrations ()
Loading image navigation...
No image index could be found for this publication.
Close this Panel
2. Means-tested benefits
Universal credit
Your child continues to be included in your universal credit (UC) claim if their stay in hospital is temporary. However, they are no longer included in your claim if the hospital stay is expected to last for more than six months, or has lasted for more than six months.1Reg 4(7) UC Regs
 While the child is still included in your UC claim, you continue to get the child element and any disabled child element.2Reg 24(2) UC Regs Your work allowance (see here) is calculated taking into account that you have a dependent child.3Reg 22 UC Regs However, if you receive the carer element in respect of caring for the child who is in hospital, this stops if you no longer have ‘regular and substantial’ caring responsibilities for your child (see here).4Regs 29 and 30 UC Regs You can have a short break in caring and still count as having regular and substantial caring responsibilities. This break can last for up to 12 weeks if your child has been in hospital for at least eight of those weeks. If you are in rented accommodation, the housing costs element is calculated as if the child is living with you for the first six months your child is in hospital.5Reg 4(7)(a) and Sch 4 para 11 UC Regs If you receive help with childcare costs in your UC, this may change if you are no longer paying for childcare because your child is in hospital.
Note: if the only reason you are exempt from the benefit cap (here) is because a child for whom you are responsible is entitled to child disability payment (CDP), adult disability payment (ADP) or personal independence payment (PIP), this exemption ends if the child is no longer part of your UC claim.6Regs 79 and 83 UC Regs
Income support and income-based jobseeker’s allowance
During the first 12 weeks of a temporary absence, your child is still treated as part of your household for income support (IS) or income-based jobseeker’s allowance (JSA).1IS Reg 16(1) and (5)(b) IS Regs
JSA Reg 78(1) and (5)(c) JSA Regs
 After 12 weeks’ absence, they are still treated as part of your household, provided you are still in regular contact with them.2IS Reg 16(5)(b) IS Regs
JSA Reg 78(5)(c) JSA Regs
 Regular contact is not defined. DWP guidance says that regular contact includes visits, letters and telephone calls that take place regularly or frequently, and that weekly or monthly visits are considered regular contact.3para 22074 DMG The DWP normally continues to treat the child as part of your household for the first year of absence, provided child benefit remains in payment for them.4para 22075 DMG After 52 weeks in hospital, a child is normally no longer treated as being part of your household, but there are exceptions (see here).5IS Reg 16(2) IS Regs
JSA Reg 78(2) JSA Regs
How your benefit is actually affected depends on whether or not you still get amounts in your IS/income-based JSA for your child.
If you do not get amounts for your child
Most people who are on IS/income-based JSA do not get amounts in IS/income-based JSA for their child(ren), and instead get child tax credit (CTC) (see here). In this situation, the amount of benefit you get should be unaffected by your child’s stay in hospital, unless you stop being entitled to carer’s allowance (CA) or carer support payment (CSP) for the child or they no longer counts as part of your household. If you stop being entitled to CA/CSP for the child, entitlement to the carer premium stops eight weeks after this date (see here).1IS Sch 2 para 14ZA(3) IS Regs
2JSA Sch 1 para 17(3) JSA Regs
 If claiming CA/CSP was the only basis for your IS claim, eight weeks after CA/CSP stops, you can no longer claim IS on this basis.3Sch 1B para 5 IS Regs If the child no longer counts as part of your household, your benefit may be affected. For example, if you no longer count as responsible for a child aged under five, you cannot claim IS as a lone parent. If you have no other basis for your IS award, you can no longer claim IS.
If you still get amounts for your child
You will only be getting amounts for your child in your IS/income-based JSA if you have been claiming for a child since before 6 April 2004 and you have not claimed CTC (see here). While your child is still considered part of your household, you continue to get a child personal allowance and family premium. If you are getting the disabled child premium and/or the enhanced disability premium, this will also continue.
If you have been getting CA/CSP and you stop being entitled, the carer premium stops eight weeks after your CA/CSP stops (see here).1IS Sch 2 para 14ZA(3) IS Regs
2JSA Sch 1 para 17(3) JSA Regs
 If you are getting IS only because you were getting CA/CSP, eight weeks after CA/CSP stops, you can no longer claim IS on this basis.
If your child is in hospital for more than 52 weeks
If the hospital stay is expected to last for more than 52 weeks, or if it has lasted for more than 52 weeks, the child is usually no longer treated as part of your household for IS/income-based JSA purposes.1IS Reg 16(2) IS Regs
JSA Reg 78(2) JSA Regs
 So, if you have still been getting amounts for your child in your IS/income-based JSA, these will stop. The exception to this rule is if:2IS Reg 16(2)(b) IS Regs
JSA Reg 78(2)(b) JSA Regs
    •there are exceptional circumstances – eg, they are in hospital and you have no control over the length of their absence; and
    •the absence is unlikely to be substantially more than 52 weeks.
If this applies, the child can still be treated as part of your household for more than 52 weeks.
Income-related employment and support allowance
There are no amounts in employment and support allowance (ESA) for dependent children and therefore your ESA is not normally affected if your child goes into hospital. The exception is if you are entitled to CA/CSP and this stops. The carer premium (part of your income-related ESA applicable amount) stops eight weeks after your entitlement to CA/CSP stops (see here).1Sch 4 para 8(2) ESA Regs
Pension credit
If you are entitled to CA/CSP and it stops, the carer addition (part of your pension credit (PC)) stops eight weeks after your entitlement to CA/CSP stops (see here).1Sch 1 para 4(3) SPC Regs Some PC claimants who are responsible for a child or qualifying young person get an additional amount for them in their PC (instead of getting CTC). If you get a PC additional amount for a child and they go into hospital, the additional amount continues during a temporary period in hospital which is unlikely to last for more than 52 weeks, or unlikely to last for substantially more than 52 weeks.2Sch 2A para 6 SPC Regs
Housing benefit and council tax reduction
If you are on IS, income-based JSA, income-related ESA or the guarantee credit of PC, you get maximum housing benefit (HB)/council tax reduction (CTR). This means your HB/CTR does not normally change as a result of your child being in hospital, provided you remain on one of these benefits.
If you are not on one of these benefits, provided your child’s absence is temporary, they continue to be treated as part of your household for HB/CTR. For HB, ‘temporary’ means for up to 52 weeks (sometimes for longer – see here). For CTR, if you are under pension age, ‘temporary’ means the absence has not exceeded, or is not expected to exceed, six months. If you have reached pension age, there is no specific definition of ‘temporary’ for CTR.1HB Reg 21(1) and (2) HB Regs; reg 21(1) and (2) HB(SPC) Regs
CTR Reg 7(9) CTR(S) Regs; reg 11(1) CTR(SPC)(S) Regs
This usually means that your applicable amount (see here) continues to include any relevant amounts and premiums for the child.
If you have been getting CA/CSP and you stop being entitled, the carer premium stops eight weeks after your CA/CSP stops (see here).2HB Sch 3 para 17(2) HB Regs; Sch 3 para 9(2) HB(SPC) Regs
3CTR Sch 1 para 5(6) CTR(S) Regs; Sch 1 para 10(2) CTR(SPC)(S) Regs
If your child is in hospital for more than 52 weeks
Your child continues to be treated as part of your household for HB (and therefore you continue to get the child personal allowance, family premium, and enhanced disability and disabled child premium if appropriate) if they are in hospital for more than 52 weeks, provided:1Reg 21 HB Regs; reg 21 HB(SPC) Regs
    •there are exceptional circumstances – eg, they are in hospital and you have no control over the length of their absence. This is an example given in the law; and
    •the absence is unlikely to be substantially more than 52 weeks.
Note: if the only reason you are exempt from the benefit cap (see here) is because a child for whom you are responsible is entitled to CDP, ADP or PIP, this exemption will end if the child no longer counts as part of your household.2Regs 75A and 75F HB Regs
Scottish child payment
Scottish child payment continues while the child is in hospital, providing you continue to satisfy the conditions of entitlement (see here).