Help needed - Claiming incapacity benefit but want to start work

Testee

Can anyone help me with this please. My OH has been claiming benefit for several years and has recently had the possibility of a job - does anyone know the position with regard to his benefits. If he takes the job and comes off the benefit but then finds he is unable to do the job long term because of his disability will he be able to go back on his benefit without lots of hassle and medicals? And is there a scale of work so that perhaps he could just work one or two days a week to start with and retain some of his benefit?

I know that he can do "permitted work" but the job that may be on offer does not come under this category.

Thanks folks, if someone can help I would appreciate it.

healy

If he takes up a job he can go back onto Incapacity Benefit at the same rate if he has to stop the job for up to 2 years. There is no allowance to keep benefit and work part time apart from permitted work.

anne99

Permitted work can be any job for up to 16 hours a week, earning no more than about £83 per week (can't remember the exact figure). It doesn't need to be a particular type of work for people with disabilities, although it can be.


When I was in your OH's position, I was starting a full-time job, and my IB stopped but I was given a £100 grant to help with the expenses of starting a new job. Better than nothing!

I was given a 52 week 'link' where if I went back on IB within 52 weeks, it would be at the same rate etc as I was on before. Unfortunately I had to do this as the full-time job I had taken on was too much for me, and going back on IB was straighforward.

Most of the info your OH needs is on the Government website - if you google incapacity benefit, you'll find it.

Recently I have investigated going back to work again and spoke to the local Benefits officer who deals with IB and she was very helpful - definitely worth a try.

Good luck to your OH - working (well, in most jobs!) sure beats being on IB!

smellynelly_3

Your husband can earn 86 pounds a week and work less than 16 hrs a week and stay on IB for 52 weeks. If he decides to come off benefit he will be entitled to a job grant and 104 week linking. So if he is sick again within 104 weeks he will go back on to the same rate he is on at the moment. He will still need to make a new claim though. He will be treated as satisfying the medical for 92 days,after which he will be refered again for a medical.

sandralovescats

Permitted work is not the same as working part-time + Incapacity Benefit.

"permitted work" is an entirely different thing

healy

sandralovescats wrote:

Permitted work is not the same as working part-time + Incapacity Benefit.

"permitted work" is an entirely different thing

All work whilst on Incapacity Benefit is called "permitted work"