Your Child Disability Payment Q&A’s

To get Child Disability Payment your child must meet the following conditions:

• be living in Scotland and
• be under 16 when you apply (but can continue to receive it until they are 18)
• need help with their personal care because of their physical or mental disability or illness and/or
• need help when moving around because of their physical or mental disability or illness and
• have had their disability or illness for 3 months before you apply and be expected to have it for at least 6 months after.

You can apply for your daughter if she is under 16 and you could continue to get it until she is 18.

Child Disability Payment will stop when your daughter is 18. If she still needs help because of her disability or illness she can apply for Personal Independence Payment.

Yes, you can claim for your nephew if you can show you are responsible for him. Getting other benefits such as Child Benefit or Universal Credit proves that he is your responsibility. If you do not get other benefits for him a letter from someone like a doctor or social worker showing he lives with you will be accepted.

The care component of Child Disability Payment can be given from when a child is born. This is given because your child needs extra day to day care with things like dressing, washing and eating.

You can get the mobility component from when your child is 3 years old if they need support to move around. This could be because they are unable to walk or might need to supervised more than other children of the same age when outside.

The cost of looking after a child with a disability is greater than that of looking after a child without one. You may have to pay for special equipment or services. You may just have higher day to day costs because you use more heating, can only buy certain food or spend a lot of money on transport. Child Disability payment can be used to pay for things like this. You will not be asked how you have spent the money or need to show receipts.

No. If you are already getting Disability Living Allowance for your son you cannot get Child Disability Payment as well.

Children already getting Disability Living Allowance will be transferred to Child Disability Payment from the end of this year. You will receive a letter telling you when this is about to happen.

The amounts are the same for both Disability Living Allowance and Child Disability Payment and you will continue to receive the same amount after the transfer.

No, your daughter will not need to be reassessed when she is transferred to Child Disability Payment. Reassessments after the transfer will be less often than with Disability Living Allowance.

To qualify for Carer’s Allowance you must get the care component of Child Disability Payment at the middle or high rate for your daughter.

You must also be:

• providing care for at least 35 hours per week
• earning under £128 per week if you are working.

You cannot get Carer’s Allowance if you are a full-time student.

The Child Disability Payment for your son would stop if you moved out of Scotland. You would then have to apply for Disability Living Allowance.

You can apply for Child Disability Payment now.

It was trialled in Dundee City, Perth and Kinross and the Western Isles and became available for families in the rest of Scotland on 22 November 2021.

For more information and details of how to apply visit https://www.mygov.scot/child-disability-payment/how-to-apply

or call:

Social Security Scotland on 0800 182 2222.