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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Work capability issues and ESA  →  Thread

UC50 issued 8 weeks into SSP

Scarcab
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Scarborough Citizens Advice Bureau

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Hi All,
My clients have joint claim for UC for help with housing cost. Both poorly; he claims new style ESA, she is 8 weeks into her SSP.
The UC recently asked Mrs to complete the UC50. Is this correct or has it been issued in error?

Ianb
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Macmillan benefits team, Citizens Advice Bristol

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It’s correct. This is one feature that works better for claimants under UC compared to ESA. Whereas ESA could not be claimed until after SSP ended a UC claimant can become entitled to the LCWRA element while still receiving SSP (which then means some or all of the SSP is ignored as income due to the Work Allowance). The LCWRA (when applicable) potentially kicks in 28 weeks earlier than a claimant could get into the Support a Group if they were entitled to SSP.

NAI
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Unclaimed Benefits Campaign, Middlesbrough CAB

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What regulations define this?

Vonny
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Welfare rights adviser - Social Inclusion Unit, Swansea

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Is her only income SSP, if getting earnings from work and this added to the SSP is more than 16 time minimum wage - would she not be treated as not having limited capability for work unless on PIP/DLA, already passed the WCA or in list of treated as having limited capability eg cancer treatment etc?

Charles
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Accountant, Haffner Hoff Ltd, Manchester

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NAI - 02 April 2019 01:23 PM

What regulations define this?

There isn’t a specific regulation for UC allowing LCW/LCWRA status/elements for those on SSP. It just isn’t excluded. For ESA, entitlement is excluded - see Section 20(1) of the Welfare Reform Act 2007.

Scarcab
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Scarborough Citizens Advice Bureau

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Thank you very much for all replies.

Ianb
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Macmillan benefits team, Citizens Advice Bristol

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Vonny - 02 April 2019 01:32 PM

Is her only income SSP, if getting earnings from work and this added to the SSP is more than 16 time minimum wage - would she not be treated as not having limited capability for work unless on PIP/DLA, already passed the WCA or in list of treated as having limited capability eg cancer treatment etc?

That’s true. For people only on SSP they can be referred because they will be below the limit. One thing that can confuse matters is that when an employee drops onto SSP the PAYE system may generate a monthly tax refund which will also be taken into account as earnings. However this is unlikely to take them over the threshold.

Helen Rogers
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In this situation, does the client need to send sick notes to UC as well as employer, or is showing UC that they are on SSP enough to trigger the UC 50?

Mark of Carnage
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Helen Rogers - 03 April 2019 09:13 AM

In this situation, does the client need to send sick notes to UC as well as employer, or is showing UC that they are on SSP enough to trigger the UC 50?

I think the way to look at it is that an award of SSP is about the employer’s attitude to sickness and means nothing to UC other than SSP is treated as earnings (so benefits from the UC earnings taper) and that claimants will have to wait until the SSP ends before they can get New Style ESA. Their conditionality while just on SSP (until they pass the WCA) is the all work requirement but work coaches may choose to be lenient because of whatever health issue they have.

Being on SSP does not require fit notes to UC but a UC claimant on SSP can ask for LCW in the same way any other UC claimant can and this will trigger the UC50. They will then need to provide fit notes to UC.

A UC claimant on SSP who asks for LCW will be sent a UC50 and serve their 3 months assessment phase from when they initiated that process. As Ianb mentioned in an earlier post this might well mean that a UC claimant who claims New Style ESA after their 28 weeks SSP is up could find they find they get the LCWRA element a few months before they started entitlement to New style ESA.