Migration Deadline Day Extensions - Couples

We have now seen a good few cases where clients who are joint claimants have successfully requested an extension, but the DWP agent has only extended the deadline for one of the two partners.

This has meant that the tax credits claims are still terminated from the original deadline day.

In the cases we’ve seen, DWP have fairly quickly conceded it was their error, but it still often leaves a big mess, and complications in how to recompense the clients.

So, basically, we are now advising clients to explicitly request for the extension to be applied to both partners’ deadline days, and ask the agent to confirm that they have in fact extended both.

Thanks Charles, this is very helpful.

Peculiar as that seems to imply that each partner should have to make full complete separate applications.

More to the point, are you seeing many clients with MM issues?  Most advice services I’m talking to are seeing surprisingly few.

We’ve not had many but just had our first incorrect TP calculation, involving CA not being deducted in the indicative amount.

I may be wrong, but I assume most advice services deal more with out-of-work claimants, and most tax credit only claims are in work, no?

When migration was just starting, DWP had a concept called “Who knows me”. The idea, at least as it was presented locally during the Harrogate migration pilot, was that different cohorts would be led through the process by a relevant ‘partner’ agency that they were already familiar or engaging with. E.g. jobseekers could get support from JCP, HB claimants might speak to their LA or social landlord.

I think it’s fair to say that DWP did not identify a potential partner who tax credit-only claimants “know”. Clearly, they should have just spoken to Charles…