can i claim anything?

shezzy

Hi there, i'm just wondering if anyone can advise me, my husband works full time and we have child tax credit, child benefit. I cannot work as i suffer bad anxiety and panic attacks but we are in debt and am wondering if i can claim anything because i can't work? Any advice would be gratefully recieved.
thankyou

TheWaltons_3

You can claim Incapacity Benefit I think, or Income Support depending on what your husbands wage is.

**Patty**

Incap depends upon the previous tax years NI contributions, so unless you've worked last year, I doubt if you'd qualify.

buff-tom

You can claim Incapacity Benefit- you may not get any money from it as has been correctly posted previously it does depend on previous years NI contributions, however you will get NI credits for as long as you claim IB.

You may also get some extra help when you do feel ready to work again.

Hope this helps.




Are you also getting Working Tax Credits? If not contact them on 0845 300 3900.

healy

The contribution rules for Incapacity Benefit are as follows :

Rules for contributory incapacity benefit
There are two national insurance contribution tests for contributory incapacity benefit.

First test
You must have paid a certain number of contributions in one of the last three complete tax years before the year in which you make your claim - known as the benefit year. The benefit year starts from the first Sunday in January to the first Saturday in the following year.

There are some exceptions to this rule. You can pass the first test if you have paid a certain number of contributions in any tax year if you:

were entitled to carer's allowance in any week during the last complete tax year immediately before the the year in which you make your claim. For example, if you made a claim in June 2006 the last complete tax year before this would be April 2004 - April 2005.
been working for two years and are entitled to the disability element or the severe disability element of working tax credit immediately before you claim.
were getting incapacity benefit in the last complete tax year before the year of your new incapacity benefit claim.
are entitled to credited contributions because you were in prison or a detention centre and have had your conviction or offence quashed by the courts. receive a credit for this period. To satisfy this rule you only need to be entitled to a credit for a week in any tax year before the the year in which you make your claim.
Second Test
To pass the second test you must have been been paid or credited with a certain number of contributions in the two tax years before the year in which you make your claim.