Can you go on multiple consecutive 1 month holidays abroad while on Universal Credit?

calcotti

Which brings us full circle to the circumstances in which temporary absences can be disregarded and the rules regarding what are regarded as temporary absences. As established at the start an absence of less than a month is a temporary absence which is disregarded and there’s is no limit to the number of temporary absences allowed.

NedS

What you will have to do is notify UC of your intention to leave the UK on each instance and the date on which you plan to return, and the jobcentre will then have to book you a face to face appointment at the jobcentre for you to attend to confirm you are back in the country. Each time it will be sent to a decision maker (for temporary absence, not in prison) to decide if the absence can be disregarded under the 1 month rule. You will have to rinse and repeat that procedure each time you plan to go abroad.

I am guessing if this is happening repeatedly as you propose then at some point the Decision Maker will also start to consider the wider questions of your centre of interest and whether you are genuinely habitually resident in the UK as whilst your proposed scheme may fall within the letter of the law it clearly does not fall within the intent of the law.

calcotti

NedS said:

Each time it will be sent to a decision maker (for temporary absence, not in prison) to decide if the absence can be disregarded under the 1 month rule. 

The House of Commons deposited papers state that this should not happen.
http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2021-0835/069_Going_Abroad_V7-0.pdf

Absences of less than one month do not require a referral to a decision maker unless the claimant has failed to comply with a requirement of the agreed claimant commitment.

xxxxxxxx

NedS said:

What you will have to do is notify UC of your intention to leave the UK 

There is also no need to inform UC you are leaving the UK on a temporary absence.  You only have to inform UC or any other benefit of material facts which may affect the benefit.  UC claimants are explicitly allowed to leave the UK for up to 1 month with no limit on the No. of times you leave the UK in a year.  As long as you can meet your commitments and requirements of the jobcentre when you are outside of the UK you have nothing to worry about.  

For what you have said to be true there would have to be an instruction given to all UC claimants that they MUST inform UC before going abroad. As far as I am aware no such instruction is given.

Spoonie_Turtle

calcotti said:

NedS said:

Each time it will be sent to a decision maker (for temporary absence, not in prison) to decide if the absence can be disregarded under the 1 month rule. 

The House of Commons deposited papers state that this should not happen.
http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2021-0835/069_Going_Abroad_V7-0.pdf

Absences of less than one month do not require a referral to a decision maker unless the claimant has failed to comply with a requirement of the agreed claimant commitment.

Interesting, thanks for that - it explicitly says that claimants should notify when they go abroad, but also that there are no limits on how many temporary absences.  Seems quite clear-cut then after all!

NCLDH

An interesting discussion. Another thing I contemplated was whether this one month rule applies only to the claimant, or dependants too? For example could someone go on holiday and then leave their children abroad with family members while they fly to the UK and then back?

Spoonie_Turtle

NCLDH said:

An interesting discussion. Another thing I contemplated was whether this one month rule applies only to the claimant, or dependants too? For example could someone go on holiday and then leave their children abroad with family members while they fly to the UK and then back?

Qualifying children can be absent from the claimant's household for up to 6 months
and can be abroad for up to 1 month at a time

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/376/regulation/4

(7) Where a child or qualifying young person is temporarily absent from a person's household the person ceases to be responsible for the child or qualifying young person if—

(a)the absence is expected to exceed, or does exceed, 6 months; or

(b)the absence is from Great Britain and is expected to exceed, or does exceed, one month unless it is in circumstances where an absence of a person for longer than one month would be disregarded for the purposes of regulation 11(2) or (3) (medical treatment or convalescence or death of close relative etc.).

(See also https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1012596/admf1.pdf)

NCLDH

xxxxxxxx said:

NedS said:

What you will have to do is notify UC of your intention to leave the UK 

For what you have said to be true there would have to be an instruction given to all UC claimants that they MUST inform UC before going abroad. As far as I am aware no such instruction is given.

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Interesting, thanks for that - it explicitly says that claimants should notify when they go abroad, but also that there are no limits on how many temporary absences.  Seems quite clear-cut then after all!

Yes it seems unclear whether notification is a legal requirement, part of the commitment, or just a recommendation.

xxxxxxxx

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Interesting, thanks for that - it explicitly says that claimants should notify when they go abroad, but also that there are no limits on how many temporary absences.  Seems quite clear-cut then after all!

That is only some kind of white paper for the house of commons, it is not law and although it is irrelevant, (except by way of a general guide to the policy intent)  it says "working enough" and "no work related requirements" groups may not notify, and our OP is apparently in one of those groups.

Notification for benefits comes under DMG chapter 4  04151

When should a change be notifed?
04151 Beneficiaries and every person by whom, or on whose behalf, sums by way of benefit are receivable are required1 to notify the Secretary of State of any change of circumstance which they might reasonably be expected to know might affect
1. continuing entitlement to benefit or
2. the payment of benefit as soon as reasonably practicable after the change occurs.

In addition there may be benefit specific rules requiring changes to be notified.

1 SS (C&P) Regs, reg 32(1B)  

calcotti

xxxxxxxx said: That is only some kind of white paper for the house of commons

As I understand it, the deposited papers are DWP operational guidance (which, as you you say, are not the law).

DMG and ADM are similarly not the law (indeed some guidance arguably does not accurately represent the law).

The DMG paragraph you have quoted is not relevant as OP is claiming UC and DMG is for legacy benefits. The SS (C&P) Regs do not apply to UC. Guidance for UC is in ADM (which may have a similar paragraph but I haven't the will to look at the moment).