What does claiming JSA entail for a self-employed person?

Seaxwyn

Hello all, I'm hoping for some advice.

My OH is self-employed takes great pride in the fact that he's never claimed benefits. However he has long periods without any work, and that places a lot of strain on me.

He has no work now and I would him to claim JobSeekers Allowance. He doesn't want to as he believes this is very hard for a self-employed person, that he would have to renounce his self-employed status and not work again.

Is this true? How can I find out more to counter his arguments? Please don't say 'go to the CAB' because it is RUBBISH here. They are never there when they are meant to be, even if you make appointments they don't show up.

healy

As he is self-employed he cannot claim contibution based JSA. He can claim Income Based JSA but it will be affected by your income (assuming that you live together) in which case he may not get any paid benefit. If he signs on he will still get his National Insurance paid in anycase.

jobbingmusician

You may be able to check whether you would be entitled to any benefits, based on your salary, by looking on www.entitledto.com

Where is your local CAB? I can tell you where there is a good advice agency in London!

kelloggs36

If you work less than 24 hours per week he should be able to claim JSA (IB) however, it would depend on how much you earn. The couple rate for JSA is about £90 ish pounds per week, so if you earn more than that (although there is a bit of a disregard) you won't get any money. Can you claim tax credits to top up?

Seaxwyn

HI jobbing musician

We are in Redhill, Surrey. It's not far from London so I'd be grateful for the recommendation, if they take people from outside the immediate area.

Thanks for the tip re entitledto.com. I just had a look and it seems I should be getting more Child Tax credits, but the only other thing we're entitled to is a Funeral Grant. Well that's nice to know I suppose.