what constitutes living together?

jacques_chirac

How many nights a week do your spend at your mum's house, and how many meals do you eat there? Same question for your girlfriend. All because you say you are living at your mum's, that does not mean the DWP will agree with you.

FBaby

Is she working? If you move with her, than you should be able to help with the children so she can get a job and contribute towards her children.

You (and probably girlfriend) need to rethink the reasons for claiming benefits. It is to support a family when they don't have the means to do so alone. If you become a family, then you are given the means to support yourself and have no need to rely solely on benefits.

Of course, you can try to beat the system, hope you are not reported for fraud or/and that you can justify to the authority that you are not officially a couple. Up to you.

nannytone_2

aaranroberts wrote: »

i think if you scroll upwards you will see that the question asked was if i stay there a few nights a week would it class as living there.... no its just what they asked for because im hardly ever there. if i did move in the yes i would take all my belongings with me.

in your OP you stated that you were thinking of moving in with your girlfriend.
the advice has been given based on you moving in with her and not staying over a few nights a week.
that is wgat you were asking, and just because you dont like the answers, doesnt mean they are wrong!
in the eyes of the DWP, especially as you work away during the week, the fact that you spend the majority of the time you are at 'home' in her house and that you contribute financiaally to her home. could mean that they would already see you as a couple.

you dont have to live together to be classed as a couple in the eyes of the law, and you are already on tricky ground.
i would urge you to make a decision, one way or the other.

the fact that your girlfriend may lose benefits isnt the entire picture.
you would be able to claim tax credits as a couple and you would also no longer be paying your mother any 'keep' money

aaranroberts

FBaby wrote: »

Is she working? If you move with her, than you should be able to help with the children so she can get a job and contribute towards her children.

You (and probably girlfriend) need to rethink the reasons for claiming benefits. It is to support a family when they don't have the means to do so alone. If you become a family, then you are given the means to support yourself and have no need to rely solely on benefits.

Of course, you can try to beat the system, hope you are not reported for fraud or/and that you can justify to the authority that you are not officially a couple. Up to you.

i dont like the way you presume so much with so little information. yes she works, she just works part time because she has alot of appointments at different hospitals due to her child

Mojisola

aaranroberts wrote: »

so is everyone in this scenario saying that i work away 5 nights a week so i am not able to stay at hers because she will be committing fraud if i do?

Yes. Lots of people have a partner who works away from home, travels because of work, gets posted overseas for months at a time, etc. They don't stop being a couple because of that and, if they claim benefits, have to claim as a couple.

While you are still using your mother's home as your regular address and keeping your possessions there, your GF will be probably to able to get away with claiming as a single person. If someone reports your appearances every weekend, she may get investigated.

zagfles

blondebubbles wrote: »

How would she lose out on £7000?

Her DLA and carers aren't affected as already stated. So she gets other benefits totalling £7000? What are they?

Presumably tax credits mainly, a £16k increase in joint income would reduce tax credits alone by £6560. Though it sounds like the OP's gf isn't working 30hours so likely they'd get the 30h element, even so it's a £5770 drop in tax credits.

jetplane

aaranroberts wrote: »

so is everyone in this scenario saying that i work away 5 nights a week so i am not able to stay at hers because she will be committing fraud if i do?

No if you live at your mothers and work away through the week and then visit your girlfriend and stay over at the weekend she will not be committing fraud. She is allowed a relationship and she is allowed friends to stay over.

However you asked about moving in so if if you move in with your girlfriend and work away through the week then she must notify her change of circumstances. Moving in is a commitment and means you no longer live at home.

Where would you live if you didn't work away during the week?

You know the difference.

NYM

aaranroberts wrote: »

if i declared living here it would mean losing out on nearly £7000 and i would not be able to afford to substitute that. so is everyone in this scenario saying that i work away 5 nights a week so i am not able to stay at hers because she will be committing fraud if i do?

Sounds like you're already living with her.

I still call my parents house 'home' even though I've not lived there for over 15 years.

FBaby

aaranroberts wrote: »

i dont like the way you presume so much with so little information. yes she works, she just works part time because she has alot of appointments at different hospitals due to her child

But so do many parents who live together. Should one of these couple decide that one of them should go and leave with their mother so the other can claim as a single person because they will get more tax credits this way?

It is no different. If you commit to her and want to support her and her family, then you have to accept that you become no different to other committed families who have to make do with what they are entitled to.

Prothet_of_Doom

I spend 4 nights a week living in a rented house in Derby, and stay with the person who I occassionally have sex with 3 nights a week. Her bedroom has her name on the door, but we share meals and a bed, I fix her car, take her shopping in my car, walk her daughters dog, and I contribute to the costs. This arrangement has been going on some time.

Now neither of us are on benefits, (apart from tax credits and child benefit), so where do I live ?


Trick question, we have been married 24 years, have joint bank accounts, and we own the house together.

The way the 'authorities' see it is for the OP is that you are not an occassional friend who visits once in a while, you are at the start of a long term permanent relationship with a person who you share bodily fluids.

Do you pay for your mid-week accomodation?
Does the location change?
If NO and YES, then I assume you could claim tax relief as you are clearly self employed. If Yes and Yes, ignore me, and if Yes and NO, I assume that you are classed as employed and can't claim tax relief.
What do you pay your mother ? If you've been living rent free, perhaps buy her a present to say sorry, and thanks?

Can I suggest that you do move in officially, you sit together and do a joint budget, and live to your joint means legally. Without having to look over your shoulders.