Fillable Printable Pension Credit Bebefits Claim Form and Guidance
Fillable Printable Pension Credit Bebefits Claim Form and Guidance
Pension Credit Bebefits Claim Form and Guidance
Notes to help you fill out the form
Pension
Credit
PC1F 04/11
These notes explain how to fill in each part of the Pension Credit application
form.
Part 1 About you
Use this part of the application form to tell us your personal details.
Why have you asked for my phone number?
It is useful for us to be able to phone you if we have a question about your
application. This saves time and could save you having to fill in more forms.
Why have you asked for the name and address of my most
convenient Post Office® branch?
We still need Post Office® details even if your money is paid into an account.
Part 2 About your partner
If you have a partner, use this part of the application form to tell us your
partner’s personal details. We use 'partner' to mean:
l a person you are married to or a person you live with as if you are married to
them, or
l a civil partner or a person you live with as if you are civil partners.
If you or your partner live permanently in a care home
If you or your partner live permanently in a care home, you should not apply as
a couple. Each of you should fill in your own application form.
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Part 3 About where you live
Use this part of the form to tell us about where you live. We need to know
about where you live because you may be able to get help with rent, Council
Tax or other housing costs – for example, service charges or mortgage
payments.
Which people living in my household do I need to tell you
about?
When you tell us if you have people who live in your household,
you do not need to count:
l people who just share a hall, bathroom or toilet with you
l other residents if you are staying temporarily in a care home
l children under the age of 16
l foster children or children who board with you while they are waiting to be
adopted.
Please do count anyone else who lives with you, including:
l relatives, including your grown-up children
l boarders and lodgers
l friends.
Can I get help with my rent and Council Tax?
If you or your partner are responsible for rent or Council Tax for the place
where you live, you may get help with the cost through Housing Benefit and
Council Tax Benefit. The Pension Service can now help you apply for Housing
Benefit and Council Tax Benefit at the same time as your application for
Pension Credit.
What should I do if my rent or Council Tax is being paid by
Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit already?
If you or your partner are getting Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit, please
tick Yes to the question ‘Are you or your partner responsible for paying rent or
Council Tax for the place where you live?’
Can I get help with my ground rent? In Scotland, this is
called ‘ground annual’.
If you pay ground rent, you may get extra Pension Credit. Please send us proof
of your ground rent, even if it is a small amount. For example, your tenancy
agreement or a letter asking you for ground rent.
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Part 3 About where you live continued
What if I am a Crown tenant, pay chief rent or pay other
rent charges?
If you or your partner are a Crown tenant, pay chief rent or other rent charges,
please tell us in Part 11 – Other information how much rent you are charged
and how much is included in the rent for water. We will get in touch with you if
we need more information. Chief rent is money paid for freehold properties to
the Lord of the Manor. If you pay similar types of rent, you should also tell us
about this.
Can I get help with my mortgage or home loan?
If you have a mortgage or home loan, you may get extra Pension Credit. Please
tell us about your mortgage or home loan in Part 11 of the application form.
We will then send you the form MI12(PC) to fill in.
If you are getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, you
do not have to tell us about your mortgage or home loan. We will already have
the information we need.
What if I have more than one mortgage or home loan with
different lenders?
You could have a mortgage from a building society and a home improvement
loan from a bank, for example. If you have a mortgage or home loan with more
than one lender, please tell us in Part 11 – Other information of the
application form. We will send you a form MI12(PC) for you and each lender to
fill in.
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Part 4 About savings and investments
Use this part of the application form to tell us how much your savings and
investments add up to. Please also tell us whether or not you own, or jointly
own, any property or land in this country or abroad – other than the place
where you live.
The amount of savings, investments, property or land that you or your partner
have may affect how much Pension Credit you get.
If your savings and investments are more than £10,000, please fill in Part 4 of
the application form.
How do savings and investments affect Pension Credit?
Savings and investments of £10,000 or less do not affect Pension Credit.
If you have savings and investments of more than £10,000, we count £1 a
week as income for each £500, or part of £500, you have above £10,000.
People aged 65 and over are rewarded for some of the savings and income
they have for their retirement. In the past, people who managed to save a little
were no better off than those who had not saved at all. Pension Credit has
changed this by giving new money to those who have saved – up to:
l £20.52 a week if you are single, or
l £27.09 a week if you have a partner.
What types of savings and investments do I need to tell you
about?
We have listed the types of savings and investments you need to tell us about
in Part 4 of form PC1. But people sometimes make mistakes when they think
about capital, savings and investments. We have included some of the
questions they ask below.
If I have an account to pay my bills, do I need to include
this as part of my savings?
Yes. You need to include all the bank accounts that you and your partner have.
Do I need to include all the money I have at home as part of
my savings?
Yes. We need to know how much money you and your partner have, even if you
keep it at home to pay bills or for any other reason.
Do I need to include my partner’s savings?
Yes. You need to include your partner’s savings and investments, including
shares. You do not need to tell us about your partner’s savings if you are
separated from them or if they are permanently in a care home.
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Part 4 About savings and investments continued
Do I need to include my shares as part of my savings?
I don’t know how much they are worth.
If you have shares you must tell us about them. We know people can
sometimes get confused about stocks and shares they may have from building
societies, ISAs or elsewhere. The current value of your shares is not the value
printed on the share certificate. You can check the current value in the FTSE
index in most newspapers. If you are not sure how to find out the value of your
shares, or if you have any other questions, you can phone us on 0800 99 1234.
What types of property or land do I need to tell you about?
You do not need to tell us about the place where you normally live, even if you
own it outright.
You do need to tell us about any other property or land that you or your
partner own in this country or abroad, even if you have a mortgage or loan to
pay for it. This could be:
l a holiday home in this country or abroad
l property that you rent out in this country or abroad
l property that you own, but relatives are living there
l a time-share property
l stables
l farmland or a paddock.
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Part 5 About benefits
Use this part of the application form to tell us about:
l Carer’s Allowance paid to someone who is caring for you or your partner, or
l Carer’s Allowance which could not be paid to someone for looking after you
or your partner because they are already receiving another benefit. For
example, if someone already receives Incapacity Benefit or Employment and
Support Allowance, they cannot be paid Carer’s Allowance as well.
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Part 6 About pensions
Use this part of the application form to tell us about any pensions you or your
partner have, other than any State Pension paid by The Pension Service. Please
include any pension that is paid to someone else on your behalf. Please also tell
us if you or your partner expect to get a pension in the next 12 months.
What proof of pensions do I need to send you?
Please send us your latest pension payslip, if you have one, or anything else that
shows how much you get or will get. But do not send us form P60 or a bank
statement.
Important
Any documents you send us as proof of a pension should be original documents.
They should show:
l who pays the pension
l when you get the pension
l any money taken off your pension
l how often the pension is paid
l how much is paid
l when you get a pension increase
l the rate at which the pension increases.
I have paid into a private pension scheme but don’t get any
money from it? Do I need to tell you about it?
Yes, please tell us if you or your partner have paid into a private pension scheme
from which you do not get any money. This could be because you have:
l chosen to put off getting money from the scheme
l not claimed money that you could have claimed
l a retirement annuity contract which you have not used to buy an annuity.
Please tell us as much as you can about this in Part 11. Please send us proof of
how much the pension would pay and how often.
What type of pension do I need to tell you about?
Please tell us about all the pensions you or your partner have.
We need to know about:
l a pension, superannuation or other money from a place you or your partner
used to work
l a pension, superannuation or other money from a place your late partner used
to work
l money from a private pension scheme – for example, from a pensions or
insurance company
l a Civil List pension
l money from an annuity, even if it is not a pension – for example, a home
income plan
l any War Pension or Armed Forces Compensation Payment paid by the British
Government
l Police and Fireman’s Disablement Pension
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Part 6 About pensions
continued
l Police and Fireman’s Widow’s Pension
l Iron and Steel Re-adaptation Benefits Scheme
l Redundant Mineworker’s Pension Scheme
l Shipbuilding Redundancy Payment Scheme
l a pension received from abroad
l the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS).
You do not need to send proof of a payment from the Armed Forces
Compensation Scheme.
I get a small payment from my late partner’s work.
Do I need to tell you about it?
Yes, please tell us about any payment you get, even if it is only a few pounds,
or paid only once a year.
Part 7 About work
Use this part of the application form to tell us about:
l self-employed work you or your partner have retired from or left in the last
three months
l any paid work that you or your partner are doing at the moment.
I left self-employed work in the last three months but did
not retire. Do I need to tell you about this?
Yes. Please tell us if you or your partner have left self-employed work for any
reason in the last three months.
What types of work do I need to tell you about?
The types of work we need to know about are:
l any work for an employer
l permanent or casual work
l self-employed or subcontracting work.
Do I need to tell you about work I don’t get paid for?
No. We do not need to know about unpaid work.
I am working and am not sure if I can get Pension Credit.
What should I do?
If you are working and are not sure whether to apply for Pension Credit, please
get in touch with us for advice. You can phone The Pension Service. The phone
number is 0800 99 1234.
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Part 8 About other money coming in
Use this part of the application form to tell us about other money you or your
partner have coming in. Please include any money that is paid direct to
someone else on your behalf. Please also tell us if you or your partner expect to
start getting money in the next 12 months.
Does all money coming in affect the amount of Pension
Credit I can get?
No, not all money coming in affects the amount of Pension Credit you get. It
depends on what the money is. Please give us as much information as you can
about the money you or your partner have coming in. This will help us decide if
we can ignore any of it.
What type of money do I need to tell you about?
Please do not tell us about social security benefits or State Pension paid by The
Pension Service. We already have this information.
Please do tell us about any of the following types of money you or your partner
have coming in.
l Money from someone who rents a room in your home or who lives in part of
your home – for example, a boarder, lodger, tenant or subtenant.
l Working Tax Credit.
l Money from a pension paid to victims of Nazi persecution.
l Royalties or money for a book registered under the Public Lending Rights
Scheme.
l Money from your ex-partner to pay for day-to-day living costs.
l Social security benefits from abroad.
l Money from a war disablement pension or war widow’s or widower’s pension
from abroad.
l Sick pay.
l Regular payments from a trust.
l Money from an equity release scheme.
l Money from the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme. You do not need to
send proof of a payment from the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
What proof of money coming in do I need to send you?
If you have any money coming in, please send us, with your application form,
proof of the amount of money and when it is paid. Please send us the original
statement or any other official document that shows the amount you get.
This could be a:
l statement from the person or company that pays the money
l court order
l bank statement showing the amount paid
l payment advice slip.
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Part 8 About other money coming in
continued
Please remember
that if we do not receive proof of money coming
in, it may affect the date we can pay you from.
We will do our best to return them within five working days of getting
them.
Important
Any documents you send us as proof of the money you have coming in should
be original documents. They should show:
l who pays the money
l when you get the money
l the amount you get, or the amount you expect to get
l what the money is for.
I can’t get any proof of the money I have coming in.
What should I do?
If you cannot get proof of the money you have coming in, please tell us why in
Part 11 – Other information of the application form. Please send us your
application form straightaway. We may still be able to pay you Pension Credit.
Part 9 Special circumstances
Use this part of the application form to tell us about any special circumstances
that apply to you or your partner, if you have one.
Some of the information in this section is to help us decide if you have a right
to reside and are habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Republic of
Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands. This is why we ask questions
about your nationality or if you have returned from abroad.
How do I know if the Home Office has put a limit on
how long I can stay?
It will be clearly marked on one of the pages of your passport.
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