Does my boyfriend staying over affect my entitlement to Tax Credits?

bargainbunny wrote: »

I was told that for IS your partner cannot stay over any night..
The 3 day rule according to her was HB rules but not there rules..

I dont let my bf ever stay over due to this but I do stay over at his sometimes for the odd night but not consecutive nights.

I wish the rules was easily available as I had a feeling the fraud officer was a jobsworth:mad:

The reason there aren't set rules for nights over is because if there was people would take advantage of the system and push it to the limit.

Instead the state expects people to be honest about their circumstances, i.e if you start refering to your boyfriend as your partner or are seen as by others as partners, you start shopping together, do domestic chores for one another, spend a lot of time together, then its time to make joint claims. None of this necessarily means either party is staying the night but doesn't stop them being partners.

At the end of the day though you will always see people here posting because they want validation that "they aren't breaking the rules" for a number of reasons, usually because of a fear of loosing independence which encompasses many things including the financial aspects.

I once saw a lady who missed some appointments at the JCP because she was organising her wedding, but was insistent that she single because her partner never stayed the night. This is an extreme example but I encountered similar scenarios.

The truth is that there is its hard to define the specific point at which a relationship becomes serious or committed, but generally if people post a thread on this board to ask the question then they are asking the wrong person, instead ask they should ask their OH and decide whether they want things to continue or end them.

Personally I'm offended by your last statement, investigating potential fraud isn't an easy job for a whole host of reasons or do you assume fraud officers don't have any humanity. Unfortunately it is necessary to investigate to protect public funds, fraud is a crime and I've known people who didn't think so because "the state can afford it".

antrobus wrote: »

So as far as the OP is concerned, I'd say that they had no obligation to inform the Tax Credits office that their boyfriend was spending the occasional night, but that they would be obliged to inform the Tax Credits office if the boyfriend moved in.

You can be deemed to be a couple, even if you do not live together. If you search the forums you will find examples of this. In one case the OP stayed over at his gf's place for a few weeks owing to her having a serious mental health crisis with little support from outside agencies. He was at the same time maintaining his own flat in another town a considerable distance away (hence him being unable to travel daily). He was on the electoral roll there, paid council tax and had bills in his name, was registered with a doctor there etc. He was also on benefits and it was very clear that he could not possibly be maintaining both homes on his income. But the DWP (in this case) decided they were a couple on the basis of him staying with her to care for her during the crisis (this was supported by reports from her medical and social work team).

After a lengthy period of her being without money and almost losing her home through losing LHA and CTB the decision was reversed. I agree it is an extreme example, but it is not as simple as saying you are not a couple if you don't live together.