From when did new claimants for income support?

get child tax credits for their children and not income support. I really need to know when this change occurred. any help or potential sources of information very gratfully received

From when did new claimants for income support?

It changed in April 2004.

Income Support is an income-related benefit for people aged from 16 years up to age 60 that are on a low income. The amount of Income Support due may be effected by other income to the household.

Savings over 鎷?6,000 usually mean you cannot get Income Support.

If you have to attend your Jobcentre Plus office regularly, you cannot get Income Support.

Can I get it?

Are you:

In Great Britain

Aged between 16 and 59?

On a low income?

Not working or working on average less than 16 hours a week?

If YES to all, claim Income Support.

Over 60?

If you or your partner are aged 60 or over you may be entitled to Pension Credit.

Pension Credit provides a contribution to a guaranteed minimum income and rewards people aged 65 and over who have made modest provision for their retirement.

Pension Credit is dealt with by The Pension Service. To find out more about Pension Credit visit The Pension Service Website.

What else should I know?

You will not have to attend the Jobcentre Plus office for regular Jobsearch Reviews if you are a lone parent, sick or disabled, unable to work because you are caring for someone, or registered blind.

If you are responsible for at least one child or young person, you may be able to get Child Tax Credit (CTC). For more information go to the HM Revenue %26amp; Customs (HMRC) website. Families already on Income Support in April 2004 who have not already claimed CTC will be moved across to CTC. CTC is paid into the Income Support customer%26#039;s account on migration. If you want to have it paid to the main carer, you must contact the HMRC to get it changed.

If you are a lone parent, you will usually have to attend a Work Focussed Interview with a Personal Adviser before you can get Income Support

If you are not a lone parent, and you live in an area with a fully converted Jobcentre Plus office or certain other designated offices, you will usually have to attend a Work Focussed Interview with a Personal Advisor before you can get Income Support

If you have to regularly attend your Jobcentre Plus office, you may be able to get Jobseeker%26#039;s Allowance (JSA)

If you have a partner who works an average of 24 hours a week or more you cannot usually get Income Support

If you have a partner who works an average of less than 24 hours a week, their earnings will usually affect the amount of Income Support you can get.

Pregnant women and people with children aged under five get free milk and vitamins, usually via the Department of Health.

Savings over 鎷?,000 usually affect how much Income Support you can get.

You may be able to get extra money to help towards certain housing costs.

You can usually get extra money for your family if you have claimed before 06/04/04. After this date if you have children you want to claim for you will need to claim Child Tax Credit.

You may be able to get Income Support if you or your partner are not working because of parental leave.

You may be able to get Income Support if you are on paternity leave.

If you have a partner where benefit is still in payment after 26 weeks of the claim, they will be required to attend a Work Focussed Interview with a Personal Advisor

If you are sick and not getting Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) you should claim Incapacity Benefit as well as Income Support.

If you get SSP you do not have to claim Incapacity Benefit as well as Income Support.

Check with your Jobcentre Plus office to see if you are on a low income for Income Support or Pension Credit.

Severely disabled people who get the highest rate of Disability Living Allowance for care will usually be able to get more Income Support. This is part of the new Disability Income Guarantee.

If you have recently come from abroad there are some extra rules.

Studying

If you are studying, you may be able to get Income Support while you are on your course if you are a lone parent, sick or disabled, or registered blind. Check with your Jobcentre Plus office.

If you are studying up to A level or equivalent, you may be able to get Income Support while you are on your course if you are unable to work because you are caring for someone.

If you are still at school you cannot usually get Income Support for yourself.

If you are still at school you may be able to get Income Support if you are:

Looking after your own child

An orphan and nobody is looking after you

Unlikely to be able to get a job because of a severe disability.

If you are still at school you may also be able to get Income Support if you are:

Not living with your parents or being supported by them

Not in touch with your parents

Separated from your parents for reasons that cannot be avoided and nobody is looking after you in their place.

Training

If you are a young person aged 18 to 24 and attending an unwaged Work Based Learning Programme in England or Skillseekers (Scotland) course you may be able to get Income Support.

If you are aged 16 or 17 you may only get Income Support if you fall into one of the categories of persons who can get Income Support whilst studying.

How much will I get?

Only use the amounts shown as a guide. The rules for benefits mean that your individual circumstances may affect the amount you can get. This means you will not always be able to work out exactly how much you will get by using these amounts.

Personal allowances, premiums and payments to cover certain housing costs together make up your benefit payment.

Weekly amounts:

Personal allowances for single people:

April 2006

aged 16-17

鎷?4.60

or depending on their circumstances

鎷?5.50

aged 18-24

鎷?5.50

aged 25 or over

鎷?7.45

Personal allowances for couples:

both aged 18 or over

鎷?0.10

Where one or both partners are aged under 18, their personal allowance depends on their circumstances.

Personal allowances for lone parents:

aged 16-17

鎷?4.60

or depending on their circumstances

鎷?5.50

aged 18 or over

鎷?7.45

Personal allowances for dependent children:

from birth to the day before 20th birthday

鎷?5.58

Premiums:

Family

鎷?6.25

Family (one lone parent rate for people with preserved rights)

鎷?6.25

Bereavement Premium

No longer applicable from 10 April 2006

Disabled child

鎷?5.08

Carer

鎷?6.35

Severe disability - paid for each adult who qualifies

鎷?6.75

Pensioner (couple)

鎷?3.95 (couple)

Enhanced pensioner - aged 75-79 (couple)

鎷?3.95 (couple)

Higher pensioner

鎷?3.95 (couple)

Disability

鎷?4.50 (single)

鎷?4.95 (couple)

Enhanced disability premium

鎷?1.95 (single)

鎷?7.25 (couple)

Reduction in benefit for strikers

鎷?1.00

Housing costs - deductions for non-dependants

Aged under 18

nil

Aged under 25 and receiving Income Support or income-based Jobseeker%26#039;s Allowance

nil

Aged 18 or over, in remunerative work and not receiving Pension Credit:

gross weekly income 鎷?38.00 and over

鎷?7.75

gross weekly income 鎷?71.00 - 鎷?37.99

鎷?3.50

gross weekly income 鎷?04.00 - 鎷?70.99

鎷?8.20

gross weekly income 鎷?57.00 - 鎷?03.99

鎷?3.35

gross weekly income 鎷?06.00 - 鎷?56.99

鎷?7.00

gross weekly income less than 鎷?06.00

鎷?.40

Other cases

鎷?.40

How do I claim?

Claim straight away. If you delay you may lose benefit.

How to claim Income Support:璺?

On-line

Phone your Jobcentre Plus office

Download a form

Claim Online

If you live in a Jobcentre Plus area you may be able to apply online

See if you can claim Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance or Incapacity Benefit online.

Please note until further notice this service is currently being piloted only in some areas of South West and North East regions. This service is being introduced on a National basis over the coming months.

You can phone your Jobcentre Plus Office

To claim Income Support you can phone your Jobcentre Plus Office. You can get details of the areas covered by Jobcentre Plus offices and the local claim numbers from your local office, find your nearest office here or look in the phone book under Jobcentre Plus. You will be asked a series of questions over the phone to establish your potential eligibility to all Jobcentre Plus benefits including Income Support. The information you provide will be captured electronically, this information will then be produced as a Customer Statement which will then issued to you to sign and return. Alternatively, if this is not acceptable to your circumstances you can ask for a claim form.

It is important that we can be sure of your identity when you make a claim. We may need to ask you about your background and look at any official documents you have to support the information you give.

From when did new claimants for income support?

was around 2001 ish i think (had just started working for dole office and it was rammed down our throats)