Attendance Allowance: Who Qualifies, Rates and How to Claim

Attendance Allowance is a tax-free weekly payment of either £76.70 or £114.60 for the 2026/27 tax year, paid to people over State Pension age who need help with personal care or supervision because of a physical or mental disability.¹ It isn’t means-tested. Your savings, your income, and whether you ever paid National Insurance make no difference. Being awarded it can also push up what you receive from Pension Credit, Housing Benefit, and Council Tax Reduction.²

Who Qualifies

You need to have reached State Pension age and have a physical disability, mental health condition, or sensory impairment severe enough that you need help looking after yourself, or someone to keep an eye on you for safety. Common qualifying conditions include arthritis, dementia, heart disease, and visual impairment. You must have needed that level of help for at least six months before your claim can succeed, unless you are terminally ill.³

You also have to be in Great Britain when you claim, have been in Great Britain for at least two of the last three years, and be habitually resident in the UK, Ireland, the Isle of Man, or the Channel Islands. Refugees and people with humanitarian protection are exempt from the two-of-three-years rule.³

You can’t get Attendance Allowance if you already receive Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Adult Disability Payment, or Armed Forces Independence Payment. In Scotland, a separate benefit called Pension Age Disability Payment applies instead.⁴

The Two Rates

Which rate you get depends on whether your care needs span only one part of the day or both.²

The lower rate of £76.70 a week is for people who need frequent help or constant supervision during the day, or someone to watch over them at night.
The higher rate of £114.60 a week is for people who need help or supervision during both the day and the night, or who are terminally ill.

Daytime needs cover things like help with washing, dressing, eating, or moving around safely. Nighttime needs cover situations where someone has to check on you, help you to the toilet, or settle you back after waking. Payments normally go straight into a bank, building society, or credit union account, and they are tax-free.²

How to Claim

You can claim online through GOV.UK, or by post using Form AA1. You can download the form from GOV.UK, or ring the Attendance Allowance helpline on 0800 731 0122 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm) and ask for one to be sent to you. Completed postal forms go to Freepost DWP Attendance Allowance. No stamp, no postcode.⁴⁵

Before you start, have to hand:

your National Insurance number
your GP surgery or medical centre details
details of your disability or health condition and how it affects your daily life
details of any hospital, care home, or hospice if you are currently staying in one

Filling the Form In So It Succeeds

The form asks how your condition affects daily life, and this is where most claims are won or lost. A diagnosis alone won’t do it. Decision makers need to picture what you actually struggle with, so specifics matter.

Instead of writing “I have arthritis,” describe the practical impact: “I can’t grip a kettle safely and have dropped one twice in the past month,” or “I need my daughter to help me in and out of the bath every morning because I can’t lift my legs over the side.” Walk through a typical 24 hours and note every task where you need help or supervision, including dressing, preparing food, using the stairs, and getting to the toilet at night.

There is a section for a statement from someone who knows you well. That person should stick to what they have personally seen rather than repeat your medical history. “I visit three times a week and always find her meals uneaten because she can’t use the cooker” carries real weight.

Supporting documents help: care plans, hospital discharge letters, a list of medications with dosages, assessments from an occupational therapist or district nurse. Copies are fine; you don’t have to send originals.

After You Apply

You should get a text or letter within three weeks confirming the Department for Work and Pensions has your application and giving an idea of when to expect a decision.⁴ A healthcare professional reviews the paperwork to work out whether your care needs meet the threshold for either rate. Sometimes the DWP arranges a consultation, either by phone or a home visit, to gather more detail about how your disability affects you in practice.

Your decision letter explains whether the claim was approved, which rate was awarded, and when payments start. If approved, payments are normally backdated to the date your claim was received.

Special Rules for Terminal Illness

If you have a progressive illness and a medical professional believes you have 12 months or less to live, you can claim under the Special Rules for End of Life. These claims are fast-tracked, the six-month qualifying period doesn’t apply, and you are automatically awarded the higher rate.⁶

Ask your GP, consultant, hospice doctor, or specialist nurse to complete an SR1 form confirming that you are nearing the end of life. They usually submit it directly, though they can give it to you to post. One SR1 covers you even if you’re applying for more than one benefit.⁶

Hospital Stays and Care Homes

If you go into hospital, Attendance Allowance continues for the first 28 days, then stops until the day you leave. The day you go in and the day you come out don’t count. Separate stays within 28 days of each other are linked and treated as one continuous period.⁷

Care home residents who pay for all their own care can still claim. But if your local authority funds any part of your care home costs, you are not eligible. This catches some people out when they move from self-funding to local authority support.³

How It Interacts with Other Benefits

Attendance Allowance doesn’t count as income for means-tested benefits, so receiving it can actually push up other payments. Once your award comes through, contact the office dealing with your Pension Credit, Housing Benefit, or Council Tax Reduction, because you may now be entitled to more.²

If someone looks after you for at least 35 hours a week, they may be able to claim Carer’s Allowance for the care they give you. Their earnings must be £196 or less a week after tax, National Insurance, and expenses, and they can’t be in full-time education. Only one person can claim Carer’s Allowance for caring for you at any one time.⁸

If Your Claim Is Refused

If your claim is turned down, or you get the lower rate when you believe you qualify for the higher rate, you can ask for a mandatory reconsideration. A different DWP decision maker looks at the case again. The request normally has to be made within a month of the decision date, though late requests may be accepted for good reasons such as a hospital stay or bereavement.⁹

Explain clearly why you think the decision was wrong. Send any new evidence with your request: a recent care plan, a statement from a healthcare professional, medical records the original claim didn’t include. Plenty of unsuccessful claims fail not because the person doesn’t qualify but because the form didn’t fully capture how bad things really are.

If the reconsideration goes against you, you can appeal to an independent tribunal, which is separate from the DWP and looks at your case fresh. The reconsideration decision letter explains how to appeal and by when.⁹

Reporting Changes

Once payments start, you have to tell the DWP about certain changes: going into hospital, moving into a care home, a significant change in your health or the help you need, and changes to your name, address, bank details, or doctor. Failing to report a relevant change can mean paying money back, a fine, or in serious cases court action.¹⁰

Reporting a worsening condition can work in your favour: it may move you from the lower rate to the higher rate. Report changes on 0800 731 0122.⁴

1
GOV.UK. Proposed Benefit and Pension Rates 2026 to 2027
2
GOV.UK. Attendance Allowance What You’ll Get
3
GOV.UK. Attendance Allowance Eligibility
4
GOV.UK. Attendance Allowance How to Claim
5
GOV.UK. Attendance Allowance Claim Form
6
GOV.UK. Get Benefits if You’re Nearing the End of Life
7
Citizens Advice. Change of Circumstances While You’re Getting Attendance Allowance
8
GOV.UK. Carer’s Allowance Eligibility
9
GOV.UK. Challenge a Benefit Decision (Mandatory Reconsideration)
10
GOV.UK. Attendance Allowance Easy Read