NP45 - A guide to Bereavement Benefits

Men and women widowed on or after 9 April 2001

How to claim Widowed Parent’s Allowance

You make one claim to cover all bereavement benefits. Use the BB1 claim pack.

You can get this from your Jobcentre Plus office, Jobcentre or social security office. See for details of how you will be paid. As part of the conditions for claiming bereavement benefit you may be asked to attend a Work Focused Interview. For more details see Advice for people claiming bereavement benefit at a Jobcentre Plus office.

Money for children – Child Tax Credit

New rules came into force from 6 April 2003 for customers wishing to make claims for a child increase with their bereavement benefit.

The child increase that was paid with Widowed Parent’s Allowance is now covered by Child Tax Credit.

For customers already in receipt of Widowed Parent’s Allowance, the child increase continues to be payable unless:

• You stop getting the benefit with which the increase for your child/children is paid
• Your child reaches 16 (or 19 if they stay in full-time education)
• The money for your child/children is not payable for eight weeks or more
• You lose entitlement to the money for your child/children altogether

If you have made a new claim to Widowed Parent’s Allowance with a date of entitlement on or after 6 April 2003, it no longer includes a child increase. You can only claim a personal rate, which is linked to the current entitlement conditions relating to children.

You may still get money for your children by making a claim to Child Tax Credit.

Child Tax Credit

• is claimed from HM Revenue and Customs
• is paid in addition to Child Benefit
• can provide for families with children, whether in or out of work
• is normally paid to the main carer

For information on how to claim Child Tax Credit, see ‘Advice for people with children’ section.

How much you get

You get a basic allowance for yourself and you may get an allowance for each of your children. Latest rates are given in leaflet GL23 Social security benefit rates. You must already get Child Benefit for the children for whom you may get an extra allowance. [Legislation (17)]

You may also get Additional Pension based on your husband’s earnings from 1978 until 5 April 2002. Additional Pension from 6 April 2002 may be based on your husband’s earnings, caring or incapacity. Details of how this is worked out are in leaflet SERPS1. Any Additional Pension you get will be reduced if you do not get the full rate of Widow’s Pension because of your age.

What happens when you get to pensionable age

You cannot continue to get Widowed Parent‘s Allowance when you reach pension age. You can choose to claim State Pension.

If you claim, you will get:

• basic State Pension of at least the same amount as your basic Widowed Parent‘s Allowance [Legislation (18)]
• and any Graduated Retirement Benefit you have earned [Legislation (19)]
• and any Additional Pension you have earned
• and half of the Graduated Retirement Benefit earned by your late husband, wife or civil partner
• and any Additional Pension you can inherit from your late husband, wife or civil partner

For more details see leaflet NP46 - A guide to State Pensions.

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