Polish tenant

mickflynn39

I currently rent out a house to a Polish woman and her 3 children. She separated from her husband in January (I've only just found out).
When they were a couple I received the rent no problem. Now he is no longer supporting her and is living elsewhere (he is unemployed) she is struggling to pay me. Her children range in age from 2 weeks old up to 4 years old. She wants a divorce.

She thinks she will have to move out and go to the council for help as she can no longer afford to live in my house. I want to help her out and am prepared to drop the rent considerably if necessary so she can carry on living in the house.

She is unaware what benefits she may be entitled to. She has lived in the UK for 6 years and doesn't work. Anybody know what she is entitled to? I'm planning to go to the council with her to find out what her options are as her English is a bit limited but would appreciate any prior knowledge as to what she may be offered.

dippy3103

Do you know what she has been living on? That would be very relevant as to what she can apply for.

mickflynn39

Her parents and friends have been helping out and she has been getting some benefits but due to a change in circumstance (husband leaving) things are a bit up in the air and she's not sure where she stands. Does she get the same benefits as a UK national? If she does then I could use the MSE benefits calculator to work things out for her.

tomtontom

Given her length of residence and family circumstances she'll be able to claim Income Support, Local Housing Allowance (HB) and Council Tax Support, as well as CTC and CB.

mickflynn39

Thanks everyone. I've used the MSE benefits calculator and come up with the following:

Child Tax Credit £168.84
Child Benefit £47.60
Income Support £72.40
Housing Benefit £103.85
Council Tax Benefit, enough to cover the full cost.

So this is a total of £1701.66 per month (excluding Council Tax Benefit as this is not really relevant as it will not now need to be paid). Housing benefit looks like it is capped at £450 per month in the town she lives in which is less than the rent. I suppose the Benefits Agency reckon that £450 should cover the rent for a suitable house given her family circumstances which it does if she moves to a terraced house instead of living in her current semi detached house.

So after Housing Benefit she should have £1251.66 per month (£288.84 per week) to live off. So if I drop the rent to the level of Housing Benefit she should be OK financially for the foreseeable future.

There does seem to be a problem which I need to investigate further. She has told me that one of the agencies involved in her benefits has said she doesn't qualify as she is not classed as having residency. This seems like it must be a mistake.

Having done the above calculations it would appear things are not too bad for her and nowhere near as bad as she thought. I just need to help her get things straightened out with the various benefits agencies as soon as possible.

Is her husband relevant in all this? They are separated but not yet divorced. He has taken all his belongings and is living elsewhere. Can she claim as above without him affecting things? It seems wrong that he is not liable for any of her living costs but getting him involved is not something she wants. Ideally she never wants to see him or have anything to do with him ever again.

duchy

Is the husband still resident in the UK ?
She may not wish to have anything more to do with him but he should be supporting his children through CSA payments -and he is also entitled to access visits with his children.

Sometimes what WE want isn't the ideal -Her children need income to survive -her husband as their father has a legal obligation to provide for them. She needs to be putting in a CSA application. Keeping children in poverty because you don't want anything to do with your ex is a luxury she simply can't afford -as she doesn't work so has no income and is reliant on benefits. As he was previously working presumably to pay the rent it's likely he will be working again so with a CSA claim in place (even though whilst he is unemployed it will be a minimal payment) when he starts working again payments will increase.

Not sure what her nationality has to do with it though.

mickflynn39

I only mention her nationality because the MSE benefits calculator says it only applies to UK and Irish Nationals. Also she is having a residency problem with her benefits claim. I didn't think it was an issue at first but this gave me cause for concern and the government is doing its best to pander to anti immigration sentiment by making it harder for immigrants to claim benefits. I now feel it is not an issue and will help her clear up the residency issue.

Her husband is currently unemployed and has been for nearly a year (from what I can gather) and is still resident in the UK. I agree he should be making a contribution towards his family even if it's not at the moment. I'll advise her to get in touch with the CSA. I'll also let her know that it is pie in the sky not wanting him or the children to ever see him again.

sleepless_saver

Her right to most benefits depends on her having a right to reside (this is different from being habitually resident which she obviously is). As an EEA national her right to reside is either as a jobseeker or as the family member of someone who is a jobseeker.

When she and her husband were together they would both havehad a right to reside, but it may well be different for her now they are separated as she is not a worker in her own right. I don't know what the rules are about separation.

She can either sign on as a jobseeker and look for work or claim benefits (seeking expert welfare rights advice if she is turned down).

NYM

mickflynn39 wrote: »

......
Her husband is currently unemployed and has been for nearly a year (from what I can gather) .....

Was he claiming HB ?

MissMoneypenny

sleepless_saver wrote: »

Her right to most benefits depends on her having a right to reside (this is different from being habitually resident which she obviously is). As an EEA national her right to reside is either as a jobseeker or as the family member of someone who is a jobseeker.

When she and her husband were together they would both have had a right to reside, but it may well be different for her now they are separated as she is not a worker in her own right. I don't know what the rules are about separation.

That's my thoughts too. As she hasn't worked at all, she seems to have been in the UK under her husband's EU free worker movement rights. Plus her husband has been unemployed for the last year.

Assuming she wants to try to stay in the UK - she needs to go to the CAB and ask them about her residency and what she should do.

mickflynn39 wrote: »

Is her husband relevant in all this?

He is everything in this. He was the one who was exercising his EU free movement worker rights to be in the UK with his family, work and claim benefits. She has never worked and therefore she was allowed to live in the UK as her EU husband's dependant. Is he still living in the UK?

MissMoneypenny

mickflynn39 wrote: »

Thanks everyone. I've used the MSE benefits calculator and come up with the following:

Child Tax Credit £168.84
Child Benefit £47.60
Income Support £72.40
Housing Benefit £103.85
Council Tax Benefit, enough to cover the full cost.

Are you sure she is not getting some/most of those benefits already? Have you checked to see if the council is paying her Housing Benefit?

If he has been out of work then they probably were/still are, claiming all of those benefits you listed (substitute the £72 IS for JSA of about £130pw).

Even if he was in work, they can claim the same benefits a UK citizen can claim and you said she had never worked. Add Working Tax Credit to your list and remove the £70 IS. The housing benefit would be reduced too.