For disability living allowance (DLA) and attendance allowance (AA) both the day you are admitted and the day you are discharged count as days out of hospital.
For all other benefits the day you are admitted is treated as a day out of hospital and the day you are discharged is treated as a day in hospital.
A stay in hospital affects your benefit in the following ways:
Stops after 4 weeks.
If you claim AA when you are already in hospital, it cannot be paid until you leave.
Not affected.
This will stop if the person you are caring for has been in hospital and their AA or DLA care component has stopped.
If you go into hospital your CA will stop after 12 weeks.
Child benefit is paid for the first 12 weeks if your child or a child you care for goes into hospital.
After 12 weeks you can continue to get these benefits for a child in hospital only if you are regularly spending money on the child’s behalf (eg on clothing, pocket money, magazines).
If you continue to get child benefit you will continue to get any child dependant’s addition that may still be payable with other benefits (such as incapacity benefit), otherwise this will also end.
If you or your partner are in hospital, child benefit normally continues to be paid.
Child tax credit is not affected but if you are claiming working tax credit (WTC) and you cease to be treated as employed because of a stay in hospital you would no longer qualify for WTC, which may affect the level of your award.
Inform HM Revenue & Customs of your change of circumstances to avoid unnecessary underpayment or overpayment.
This is paid for an indefinite period as long as the other conditions of entitlement are met. Certain premiums and costs are affected:
Stops after 4 weeks.
If you have a Motability agreement in force when you go into hospital, DLA mobility component continues to be paid to Motability for the full term of the agreement. Any balance that would otherwise be paid to you stops after 28 days.
You cannot begin or renew a Motability agreement while you are in hospital. An exception allows the renewal of agreements under the Motability wheelchair scheme provided the new agreement is entered into the day after the old one ends. Note that the mobility component will be paid if you renew a Motability agreement during a temporary absence from hospital.
If you claim DLA when you are already in hospital, it cannot be paid until you leave.
Stops after 12 weeks.
If there is a Motability agreement in force, the mobility component continues to be paid to Motability for the full term of the agreement.
Guardian’s allowance is paid for the first 12 weeks if your child or a child you care for goes into hospital.
After 12 weeks you can continue to get these benefits for a child in hospital only if you are regularly spending money on the child’s behalf (eg on clothing, pocket money, magazines).
This is paid for an indefinite period as long as the other conditions of entitlement are met. Certain premiums and costs are affected:
Paid as long as you continue to satisfy the other conditions of entitlement.
This is paid for an indefinite period as long as the other conditions of entitlement are met. Certain premiums and costs are affected:
IS can continue to be paid during a temporary absence abroad for the purpose of receiving NHS hospital treatment.
Constant attendance allowance stops after 4 weeks. Other benefits are not affected.
You cannot normally claim Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) while you are in hospital because you will not be deemed capable of work or able to satisfy the labour market conditions.
However, if you are already receiving JSA when you go into hospital, you can be treated as being capable of, available for, and actively seeking work for up to 2 weeks. You can do this twice within any 12 months of the same job seeking period.
You may also be able to claim claim incapacity benefit or income support instead.
JSA can continue to be paid during a temporary absence abroad for the purpose of receiving NHS hospital treatment.
Not affected.
If you have a Motability agreement in force when you go into hospital, DLA mobility component continues to be paid to Motability for the full term of the agreement. Any balance that would otherwise be paid to you stops after 28 days.
You cannot begin or renew a Motability agreement while you are in hospital. An exception allows the renewal of agreements under the Motability wheelchair scheme provided the new agreement is entered into the day after the old one ends. Note that the mobility component will be paid if you renew a Motability agreement during a temporary absence from hospital.
This is paid for an indefinite period as long as the other conditions of entitlement are met. Certain premiums and costs are affected:
Not affected.
Paid as long as you continue to satisfy the other conditions of entitlement.
Not affected.
Not affected.
Not affected.
Not affected.
This may be increased when you go into hospital, if the treatment is for the war injury.
Constant attendance allowance and war pensioners’ severe disablement occupational Allowance stop after 4 weeks.
Not affected.
Working tax credit (WTC) is not automatically affected by a stay in hospital. However, if you cease to be treated as employed because of a stay in hospital you would no longer qualify for WTC, and if your other income changes this may affect the level of your award.
Inform HM Revenue & Customs of your change of circumstances to avoid unnecessary underpayment or overpayment.
You can get help at a local advice centre, such as a citizen's advice bureau. You can get more information about this from our factsheet F15, Finding a local advice centre, which is available at http://www.disabilityalliance.org/f15.htm.
You can find out more information about in Disability Alliance's Disability Rights Handbook, available to order at www.disabilityalliance.org/drh33.htm. In particular it explains what happens to your disability living allowance or attendance allowance if you have temporary absences from hospital.
You can obtain copies of our factsheets, or order our publications, by contacting Disability Alliance on 020 7247 8776 (voice and minicom) or by fax on 020 7247 8765.
April 2008