P45, unemployment and JSA

mrmelody5

hi guys, i registered here as a last hope to get some help with my situation...

i left college around 5 months ago and began seeking employment through the job center, after several interviews i was still unable to get a paying job...

i felt kinda bad that i was constantly claiming JSA without anything to give back in return , so i told the job center i found a job (which i didn't) and so i signed off with the job center.

From when i was claiming i managed to save some money back to last me throughout this period of not claiming and unemployment, however that money has dried up... and i need to reclaim JSA again.

they have sent me something called a P45 with another letter telling me that £1000 of my JSA is taxable!!

i will be going to the job center on Monday hoping to start my claim again but i am afraid they will deny my request...

does anyone have any advice how i can fix this situation? i was only doing what i thought was right!:(

benefitbaby

Hi, firstly I would like to say that you should never be put off claiming your legal entitlement

There are 2 sorts of JSA:

• contribution-based JSA (based on National Insurance contributions made in the 2 years prior to you claim) this is a taxable benefit
• income-based JSA (entitlement is based on income and savings) this is not taxable

Everyone gets a P45 at the end of a benefit claim as when you are receiving benefits the DWP pay national insurance credits (1 per week) to your NI record. The letter you have received is merely confirming this, so don't worry.

mrmelody5

ok thank you for the clarification..

this whole situation is new to me and I'm hoping i haven't completely shot myself in the foot by lying to them!

benefitbaby

mrmelody5 wrote: »

ok thank you for the clarification..

this whole situation is new to me and I'm hoping i haven't completely shot myself in the foot by lying to them!

My advice (for what it's worth) is to be open and honest and remember when you signed off JSA previously you saved the DWP (and in turn the public purse) money so you can't be all bad!