NP45 - A guide to Bereavement Benefits

Men and women widowed on or after 9 April 2001

Widowed Parent’s Allowance

Widowed Parent‘s Allowance is a regular payment of benefit starting on the Tuesday after you are widowed. If you are widowed on a Tuesday, it will start on that day. It is taxable and based on National Insurance (NI) contributions. [Legislation (7)]

It is made up of:

• a basic allowance; [Legislation (8)]
• and Additional Pension, if you qualify. [Legislation (9)]

It may also include an allowance for each of your children. You cannot get Widowed Parent’s Allowance and Bereavement Allowance at the same time.

Who can get Widowed Parent’s Allowance

You can get Widowed Parent‘s Allowance if your husband, wife or civil partner had met the NI contribution conditions or if their death was caused by their job and:

• you have a child for whom you are entitled to (or can be treated as entitled to) Child Benefit [Legislation (10)]
• or you are expecting your late husband‘s baby
• or you are expecting a baby as a result of being artificially inseminated with the semen of someone other than your late husband and insemination occurred before your husband‘s death and you were living with your husband immediately before his death [Legislation (11)]
• or you are expecting a baby as a result of ‘in vitro’ fertilisation before your husband‘s death and you were living with your husband immediately before his death. [Legislation (12)]

The child must be:

• yours and your late husband's, wife's or civil partner's
• or a child your husband, wife or civil partner was entitled to Child Benefit for immediately before their death [Legislation (13)]
• or a child you were entitled to Child Benefit for if you and your husband, wife or civil partnerwere living together immediately before their death. [Legislation (14)]

If the child is not living with you, but you are making payments towards the cost of providing for the child, you may be able to get Widowed Parent‘s Allowance.

There are special rules when you and a child are living abroad or have recently returned to Great Britain.

Widowed Parent‘s Allowance stops when you no longer have a dependent child. If this is within 52 weeks of bereavement you may be entitled to Bereavement Allowance.

Who cannot get Widowed Parent’s Allowance

You cannot get Widowed Parent’s Allowance: [Legislation (15)]

• if you have been divorced from your husband or wife or your civil partnership has been dissolved
• or if you remarry or reform a civil partnership
• or while you are living with someone else as husband, wife or civil partner and you are not legally married to them or not in a legal civil partnership
• or while you are in prison or are held in legal custody [Legislation (16)]
• or if you are over state pension age

What you can get

Table 2 summarises the bereavement benefits or State Pension you may be able to get, depending on your age when your husband, wife or civil partner died.

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