not entitled to JSA

charlie101_2

Hi all this site comes highly recommended by friends so here are my problems as follows.

Few months back my girlfriend was on JSA, they told her after a few months she wasnt entitled to any more JSA due to national insurance contributions so we both left it she hasnt worked or claimed since then, basically she wanted to consider her options, recently shes become pregnant 13 weeks at the moment, im curious as to what she can claim...

Im claiming Incapacity Benefit (ESA) im unable to work due to illness. Ideally we want to start living as a couple (we dont at the moment), and dont have a flat which is another problem, The job center informed us a while back if we wanted to start living as a couple she would need to be moved to my claim (My ESA), is this correct and the only way?

If anyone has any advice or perhaps benefits we are entitled to this would be of great help..

Look forward to your responses

NASA_2

She can go on your ESA claim or you could go on her JSA (If she claimed JSA(IB) claim and apply for an exemption for you Jobseeking.

Probably easier for you to go on her ESA.

Incapacity is a completely seperate benefit from ESA by the way. Which one are you on?

charlie101_2

im on incapacity benefit, which was done before all this new ESA stuff, so perhaps its still classed as incapacity for me.

So it would make more sense if I added her to my incapacity claim?, really looking for the best option here due to a baby on the way.. Also whats the downfalls from this, is there a cut in money ?...

thanks for the fast reply ESA

NASA_2

charlie101 wrote: »

im on incapacity benefit, which was done before all this new ESA stuff, so perhaps its still classed as incapacity for me.

So it would make more sense if I added her to my incapacity claim?, really looking for the best option here due to a baby on the way.. Also whats the downfalls from this, is there a cut in money ?...

thanks for the fast reply ESA

Well, if she has no money coming in, no savings, then I dont see a reduction in money.

You can get an Adult Dependency Increase on IB. You might be able to claim Income Support but I am not even close to 100% on that..

MamTor13

Depends. Are you on Income Support (think of this as income based Incapacity Benefit, some people don't realise it's IS they are getting) or Incapacity Benefit itself? If income support then it will become a joint claim with her income/savings being taken into account. Obviously if her income or savings are too high then you may lose your benefit or have it reduced. This won't happen if your on Incapacity. I'm assuming she has savings as her JSA was stopped after 6 months and you say she is now not claiming anything. If you are on Incapacity itself then you can claim for your partner in certain circumstances as an adult dependent.



You may want to consider applying for Disability Living Allowance if your illness calls for needing support from another person. It's irrelevant if you are receiving support presently, you just need to justify why receiving support would help in respect of your disability/illness. If you were successful in getting either middle or higher rate DLA care component then your partner would be eligible to claim Carer's Allowance if she's not earning over a certain amount (approx 90 quid a week). Both DLA and Carer's Allowance are not means tested and are therefore not effected by savings.

charlie101_2

Depends. Are you on Income Support (think of this as income based Incapacity Benefit, some people don't realise it's IS they are getting) or Incapacity Benefit itself? If income support then it will become a joint claim with her income/savings being taken into account.

currently im not on income support, might be worth mentioning im living my mother at the moment so i was under the impression all i could claim was incapacity due to living with a close relative.

Obviously if her income or savings are too high then you may lose your benefit or have it reduced. This won't happen if your on Incapacity. I'm assuming she has savings as her JSA was stopped after 6 months and you say she is now not claiming anything. If you are on Incapacity itself then you can claim for your partner in certain circumstances as an adult dependent.

My gf has no savings, her parents have helped her out over the past few months due to lacking work and being told she cant claim JSA.

You may want to consider applying for Disability Living Allowance if your illness calls for needing support from another person. It's irrelevant if you are receiving support presently, you just need to justify why receiving support would help in respect of your disability/illness. If you were successful in getting either middle or higher rate DLA care component then your partner would be eligible to claim Carer's Allowance if she's not earning over a certain amount (approx 90 quid a week). Both DLA and Carer's Allowance are not means tested and are therefore not effected by savings.

would this affect where im currently living i.e my Mothers?, obviously with regards to that im looking to move out and get a flat asap but being able to sort this out prior to that would be hugely benefical..

thanks for both of your replays look forward to your responses

MamTor13

charlie101 wrote: »

currently im not on income support, might be worth mentioning im living my mother at the moment so i was under the impression all i could claim was incapacity due to living with a close relative.
My gf has no savings, her parents have helped her out over the past few months due to lacking work and being told she cant claim JSA.
would this affect where im currently living i.e my Mothers?, obviously with regards to that im looking to move out and get a flat asap but being able to sort this out prior to that would be hugely benefical..

thanks for both of your replays look forward to your responses

Well, if you moved into a flat together your income would be topped up with IS for the time being. It's a separate benefit from Incapacity so you'd need to apply. This may change to ESA income related as time goes on and Incapacity/IS is stopped for everyone. The way to work it out is you calculate your income as a couple on IS and then deduct your Incapacity from the total as this will be viewed as income. Obviously you can claim for Housing benefit/housing allowance and Council Tax benefit. Before you do anything you'd need to check this the DWP as they obviously have more information about your ages and circumstance etc than I do.

You can claim DLA now, nothing to do with where you are living. If they turn you down always ask for a review and state why, if that fails you can appeal. Don't forget, you need to tell them how someone supporting you helps with day to day life, maybe it makes things easier or less risky, and not just tell them about your illness. DLA can have a significant affect on the amount of Income Support you are entitled to and can increase the amount by quite a bit, depends on the level of care component you receive.