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Income Support
Income Support is a benefit designed mainly for Lone Parents and Carers.
It's for people who all the following apply to:
- are between age 16 and the age they can get Pension Credit
- have a low income
- work less than 16 hours a week
- aren't in full-time study (but there are some exceptions)
- don't get Jobseeker's Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance
- don't have savings above £16,000
- live in Great Britain
- You may get Income Support if you are one of the following:
- a lone parent with the youngest child under 10 (from October 2010 this drops to under 8)
- on parental or paternity leave
- a carer
- a refugee learning English who arrived less than a year ago
- Click for link to Direct Gov Website
To get Jobseeker's Allowance you must be:
- available for and actively seeking work
- between 18 and State Pension age
- working less than 16 hours per week on average
- There are two types of Jobseeker's Allowance, 'contribution-based Jobseeker's Allowance' and 'income-based Jobseeker's Allowance'.
Contribution-based Jobseeker's Allowance
Jobcentre Plus can pay this for up to 182 days. It’s based on how much National Insurance you have paid in the last two tax years. Generally, self-employed contributions will not help you qualify for contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.
Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
This is based on your income and savings. You may get this if you have not paid enough National Insurance contributions (NICs) (or you've only paid contributions for self-employment) and you're on a low income.
Jobseeker's Allowance isn't normally paid to 16 or 17 year olds, except in special cases.
If you’re a man who has reached the Pension Credit qualifying age, you may be able to claim Pension Credit. Contact Jobcentre Plus for advice. The Pension Credit qualifying age is gradually increasing for men and women from 60 to 65 between April 2010 and 2020.
Job Seekers Allowance and Income Support
Claim by phone
Call Jobcentre Plus on 0800 055 6688.
Claim online
Apply online for Jobseeker’s Allowance:
- You can download an Income Support claim form to fill in and complete on screen.
- Alternatively you can download an Income Support claim form that you can print out and complete with a pen.
- When claiming by phone a new claim can take up to 30 minutes depending on the caller’s circumstances. The First Contact officer you will be giving your information to will be working from a scripted system and needs to take all of your details.
If you are single then you will need to provide your name, address, date of birth and National Insurance Number, details of any dependent children aged under 20, details of any work you have had in the past 6 months, details of any savings and investments, details of any further education you have had in the past 4 years along with any grants you may have been paid. Finally you will need to give your sort code and account number to enable payments to be made. Next step is you get an appointment booked in your local Job Centre.
If you are part of a couple then you will need to provide your name, address, date of birth and National Insurance Number, details of your partner, details of any dependent children aged under 20, details of any work you and your partner have had in the past 6 months, details of any savings and investments for you and your partner, details of any further education you and your partner have had in the past 4 years along with any grants you may have been paid. Finally you will need to give your sort code and account number to enable payments to be made. Next step is you get an appointment booked in your local Job Centre.
Don’t forget the person doing your claim on the Contact Centre phones are only human and there to help you.
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