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Any ideas of what this means in practice?
Hi,
Can anyone explain what this means?
You cannot make a new claim for UC if you
are in prison. However, if you were not
getting UC before you went into prison but
were entitled to it, you might qualify for
backdated payments. You could then get
UC for up to 6 months in prison.
Taken from
https://www.nhas.org.uk/docs/Prisoners_-_keeping_your_home.pdf
I cannot find any Regs etc about this, Reg 19 does not seem to shed any light on it either
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/376/regulation/19
If anyone can clarify then I would be very grateful
Best wishes
A prisoner is not entitled to UC - reg 19(1) - except that if they had an entitlement immediately before becoming a prisoner they can retain their housing costs for 6 months - reg 19(2).
A claim for UC can be backdated for up to a month in defined circumstances - reg 26 of the C&P Regs.
A prisoner who claimed UC from a date at which they were a prisoner would have their claim refused and would get nothing.
But if a prisoner were to have their claim backdated to a point in time at which they were not a prisoner, so that they had been entitled at the point of claim and only later became a prisoner, they would be able to take advantage of reg 19(2) to preserve the housing costs aspect of their claim.
I do think the NHAS guidance is rather optimistic in that this could only work if the claimant acts very quickly on becoming a prisoner and meets one of the criteria for backdating but it is conceptually possible.
Many thanks for that - all a little confusing, and like you say very unlikely but possible if all the stars align!
Cheers
[ Edited: 16 Apr 2020 at 05:18 pm by roecab ]It’s essentially just a question of having a running claim before the imprisonment, and this can be achieved with backdating.
Do note that it’s only the HC element that can continue for 6 months (and only if the sentence is expected to last less).
It’s essentially just a question of having a running claim before the imprisonment, and this can be achieved with backdating.
Do note that it’s only the HC element that can continue for 6 months (and only if the sentence is expected to last less).
I get that, but this confuses that point:
‘However, if you were not getting UC before you went into prison’