UK Nationals and ..Attendance allowance

Cyprus Residents Planning Group

Attendance Allowance

Attendance Allowance is a (UK benefit) that is not means tested to help pay for care for the elderly.

Attendance Allowance is only available to people who are in receipt of a UK state pension. (There are different allowances for people below state pensionable age). Attendance Allowance is available to UK State Pensioners living in Cyprus who are covered under the Withdrawal Agreement. This means that you must have been legally resident in Cyprus before 31 December 2020.

Eligibility

You can apply for Attendance Allowance if you’ve reached State Pension age and the following apply:

you have a physical disability (including sensory disability, for example blindness), a mental disability (including learning difficulties), or both

your disability is severe enough for you to need help caring for yourself or someone to supervise you, for your own or someone else’s safety

you have needed that help for at least 6 months (unless you might have 6 months or less to live)

Attendance Allowance rates

Rate    Level of help you need

Lower rate – £68.10    Frequent help or constant supervision during the day, or supervision at night

Higher rate – £101.75    Help or supervision throughout both day and night, or a medical professional has said you might have 12 months or less to live

Benefits if you were living in the EU, EEA or Switzerland by 31 December 2020

If you were living in an EU country by 31 December 2020 you are covered by the EU Withdrawal Agreement. You may be able make new claims for some UK benefits, if you meet all the normal eligibility requirements. You may get Attendance Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, PIP (daily living component) or the care component of Disability Living Allowance.

This is the link to check eligibility https://www.gov.uk/uk-benefits-abroad

@Toon

It's possible, but I noticed some fairly important restrictions ("must be in Great Britain when you claim... must have been in Great Britain for at least 2 of the last 3 years"). I don't know how much these are enforced if you're living abroad under the WA.

I'm currently caring for my elderly father (97, with Alzheimer's). I applied for AA on his behalf when he was living in the UK, and that was fairly straightforward (Alzheimer's is a disability). But there was some back-and-forth over the degree of disability and which rate would be paid. He started at Lower rate, and a year or two later I convinced them it should be Higher rate.

When I took him out of the UK (early 2024), his AA got stopped. However, I submitted an appeal based on me being covered by the WA (as I arrived in Europe before 2020), and my father ALSO being covered as he'd been admitted as my Family Member. Fortunately, this is reflected in his residence permit which is an Article 50 ("Brexit") card, just like mine, and the appeal was successful.

Compared to the cost of care, it's rather a drop in the bucket. But it would be churlish of me to complain, and every little helps, eh? :-) If you, or a family member, qualifies, it's certainly worth applying.

If someone gets AA, then there's also the possibility of Carer's Allowance for their (full time) carer. But, as with AA, I don't know how easy it is if you're living abroad already.

I agree but as you say every little helps and it's worth applying ..the worst that can happen is a decline then an appeal failing ..so at that point you are no worse off...but you could be better off..

Worth a punt