New style Jobseeker’s Allowance

This benefit is based on your National Insurance contributions as opposed to your income. If you have made the necessary National Insurance contributions over the last two or three years, you may get new style Jobseeker’s Allowance.

You can get new style Jobseeker’s Allowance if you are made redundant or if you leave your job for reasons other than illness or disability.

You get new style Employment and Support Allowance instead if you leave work due to illness or disability.

You can apply for new style Jobseeker’s Allowance online if you are over 18. If you are aged 16 or 17 you may still be able to apply. Speak to your local Jobcentre Plus for more details.

Apply for new style Jobseeker’s Allowance.

New style Jobseeker’s Allowance allowance rates:

This is the weekly allowance:

Single parents aged under 25: £72.90 

Single parents aged 25 and over: £92.05 

To receive new style Jobseeker’s Allowance, you will have agreed to undertake certain tasks which will be included in your ‘claimant commitment’.

More information and how to apply for new style JSA

You can apply online or call Jobcentre Plus if you need help.

Telephone: 0800 055 66 88

Textphone: 0800 023 4888

See more information and how to claim online.

Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance

Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance is a legacy benefit, meaning no new claims can be made for it. It has been replaced by Universal Credit.

Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance was paid to people out of work with no, or a very limited, income. It was affected by any income, money or savings over £6,000.

Income-based Jobseeker’s allowance rates:

No new claims can be made for this benefit. The advice below is for people who have not yet moved from income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance to Universal Credit.

This is the weekly allowance:

Single parents aged 16 or 17: £72.90
Single parents aged 18 and over: £92.05 

To receive income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, you will have agreed to undertake certain tasks which will be included in your ‘claimant commitment’.

Free school meals

All children in primary 1 to 5, at schools (and special schools) run by their local council or funded by the Scottish Government, can get free school lunches during term-time. 

Your child could get free school meals after primary 5 if you get:

• Universal Credit (where your monthly income is not higher than £850)
• Scottish Child Payment
• Income Support
• income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance
• income-based Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

If your child is 16-18 years old and receives any of these benefits for themself, they can also claim free school meals.

For more information and how to apply see: Free School Meals.

What is a Claimant Commitment?

The Claimant Commitment is a contract between you and the Department for Work and Pensions. It records the steps you are expected to carry out to find work while you receive either new style Jobseeker’s Allowance or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance. It can include details of specific tasks and when they must be completed, the changes of circumstance that you must report and information on penalties for not completing tasks.

The Claimant Commitment will also state how many hours per week you are expected to work. For single parents, this is normally a minimum of 16 hours per week. If you are responsible for a child under the age of 13, you can restrict your hours to school hours. The Claimant Commitment will be reviewed from time to time.

Penalties if you do not meet the terms of your Claimant Commitment

Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or new style Jobseeker’s Allowance payments can be suspended for many reasons, this is known as a sanction. You can be sanctioned if you:

• do not go to an appointment with your work coach
• do not accept or stick to your agreement to look for work
• turn down a job or training course when it has been offered to you
• do not apply for jobs you’ve been told about
• do not go to interviews you’ve been invited to
• do not go to any training that has been booked for you or take part in employment schemes
• are not available to start work immediately
• choose to take a pay cut at your current job without good reason
• have your pay cut at your current job (if you are working) because of something you did, for example bad behaviour
• leave your last job or training without good reason or because of bad behaviour

What sanction, if any, is to be applied will be decided by taking all your circumstances into consideration.

Sanctions can either last for a fixed period of two to four weeks, or they can vary in length, with a maximum of up to six months. You should not be sanctioned if you can show ‘good cause’ for not applying for/accepting a job or for leaving a job.

If your payment is suspended and you were claiming income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, you could qualify for hardship payments. These payments are usually 40% lower than income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance. The reduction in payments is only 20% if you or any member of your family is either pregnant or seriously ill.

Ask at the Jobcentre for form JSA10: income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance hardship application. There is usually a 7-day waiting period before it is paid but payment may be immediate if you are homeless or have mental health issues.

You cannot claim hardship payments if you were claiming new style Jobseeker’s Allowance.