Disabled 19yr old. ESA or tax creds??

Apologies if the answer is bleedin obvious but i have little experience in younger persons benefits.

I have a client who turned 19 in march 2014 and was in approved education.

His course finished in July and he is off to college in a week or so.

He also gets MRC DLA.

He lives with his aunt and wants benefit advice as CB and CTC stopped

He couldnt start this course before his 19th birthday as he was already enrolled in FE, and according to CPAG this means he has good cause to be treat as a child for benefit purposes until he is 20 (if i read it right!)

He is 20 in 6 months time so CB/CTC stops anyway, so my question is this :

Should he claim ESA while at college, and if so will he have to go thru WCA same as everyone else or should the aunt claim tax creds. TC stops in 6 months anyway but ESA will stop earlier if he fails WCA, and JSA will be out of the question as at college.

Opinions please?

Thanks in advance

Hi,

She can’t claim CTC for him if he started or was enrolled on the course after turning 19. CPAG top of p152 is the key bit.

As someone claiming IRESA as a disabled student he is automatically treated as having LCWRA and so the WCA is only carried out to determine WRAG vs SG, and he can’t be found fit - but its not easy to get the ESA office to understand that! (see CPAG bottom of p1005).

Jane

I thought he may have been in one of the exempt groups regarding the turning 19 before the course started thingamabob.

ESA it is then!

Thanks Jane, Most appreciated