Polish national - any Pension Credit entitlement?

My client is aged 64, dob 22/04/1947. He came to the UK in January 2009. He worked until April 2011 with different agencies, but has never registered with WRS. He hasbeen diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer and claimed ESA, which was refused. He then tried to claim JSA, which was refused because he has a sick note stating he cannot work and when asked about work told JSA he cannot work. He has now applied for Pension Credit. I do not think he will qualify. I think the only benefit he can lay claim to is IB JSA. He would have to stipulate that he is available for work within his capabilities. He has also applied for DLA which has been refused and is under appeal.
He is currently in Salvation Army accomodation. HB is being paid on the grounds of “nil income” .
Can anyone help me on this one, please?

Girdy

Think the ESA situation very difficult, I have someone in the same situation (but temporarily ill).  Don’t know if there is room for a test case on whether someone in unregistered work in the past is still a worker? In any case there should be no problem at all with DLA on Special Rules.  Has this been done?  Ruth

And is there any mileage in the coordination rules if he has in the past been working and paying contributions in Poland? Ruth

I’ve not been able to find a way around the worker problem for A8 nationals who haven’t worked under WRS for ESA purposes- I had a simillar thread running recently.

Just wondering whether special rules will definitely apply to him? Often, in my experience, prostate cancer whilst incurable can result in quite a significant life expectancy.

At the moment he is waiting for a decision re his Pension Credit application, which I do not think he will get.
Looking at his DLA appeal papers, there is no mention of terminal prostate cancer. I was told today, by his support worker at the Salvation Army, that he has been given “life expectancy” of 2 years. I do not have this in writing. Even if I did “special rules” would only apply if death can be reasonably expected within 6 months.
The local Revenues and Benefits have given him HB on the basis of nil income and an adult care program are paying his “personal rent”, because he is getting HB, all of which is meeting the financial requirements at the Salvation Army. However, if his HB stops he will not have resources to stay at the Salvation Army.
I’ve tentively broached returning to Poland, but it seems he would be in a worse situation.

Girdy

If he intends to remain in the UK I think his best bet is to reclaim JSA and limit his availability around his condition. Hopefully that will buy some time for the DLA appeal to run it’s course and if successful he will have some fall-back income if he later becomes too ill to jump through the JSA hoops.

Do you think he could make another claim for JSA - he is still under pension age, if he insists that he is a work seeker, prepared to find work within his physical capabilities?

Girdy

Another long shot. However, it is very likely that client did pay NI contributions (I have had several East European clients whose work was not registered but they did have proper wage slips with normal tax and NI deductions).  I would expect that in his first claim for ESA the possibility of contribution-based ESA was looked at but this would be for the current benefit year.  However, in January 2012 the “relevant benefit year” changes. They would be looking at contributions in the two tax years which fell before the relevant benefit year. These would be April 2009 to April 2010 and April 2010 to April 2011.  If he came in 2009 he may well your client paid enough NI contributions in both of the above years (since he won’t have received any credits)  and he might now qualify for contribution-based ESA. Ruth

Thanks! Its worth a try, but he has been a bit evasive about NI contributions. Also I assumed they would have been investigated by ESA, when he made his claim. Its certainly worth investigating thoough.

Girdy