Carer's Allowance in Scotland being replaced by Carer Support Payment

Carer's Allowance in Scotland is being replaced by Carer Support Payment, according to guidance published by mygov.scot and Social Security Scotland¹. The Mental Health and Money Advice service states the same position in guidance last updated on 16 April 2025: "Carer's Allowance in Scotland is being replaced by Carer Support Payment"³. OPFS, an independent Scottish advice organisation, says Carer Support Payment "has replaced the Carer's Allowance in Scotland"⁴.

Social Security Scotland says Carer Support Payment is £86.45 per week and "has replaced Carer's Allowance for most carers in Scotland"². It is available to people providing care for 35 hours or more a week to someone who receives a qualifying disability benefit, and the carer must earn less than £204 per week after tax, National Insurance and expenses². OPFS says the person cared for does not have to live with or be related to the carer⁴. The Mental Health and Money Advice service, writing about Carer's Allowance, gives a lower earnings limit of £151 a week after tax, National Insurance and pension contributions, and says claimants must not be studying more than 21 hours a week³. The two figures are not directly comparable: the £204 figure is the one Social Security Scotland gives for Carer Support Payment².

Three further payments are described by Social Security Scotland²:

The Mental Health and Money Advice service refers to additional Scottish support as the "Carer's Allowance Supplement"³, while Social Security Scotland calls it the Scottish Carer Supplement². OPFS says the Young Carer Grant of £405.10 is paid once a year and may be available for three years⁴.

Under Special Rules for Terminal Illness, mygov.scot says Carer Support Payment can be claimed if either the carer or the person cared for already receives a disability benefit under those rules, including Adult Disability Payment, Child Disability Payment or Pension Age Disability Payment from Social Security Scotland, or Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment or Attendance Allowance through Special Rules for End of Life¹. The usual rule requiring 26 of the past 52 weeks living in the Common Travel Area does not apply in these cases, and payment can be requested weekly in advance instead of every four weeks, with the overall amount unchanged¹.

Why it matters for households

Carers in Scotland who would previously have claimed Carer's Allowance now claim Carer Support Payment instead, and the payment is administered by Social Security Scotland rather than the Department for Work and Pensions³. The Mental Health and Money Advice service lists Carer's Credit as remaining with the DWP, while Carer's Allowance and Carer Premium in Scotland are administered by Social Security Scotland³. For carers elsewhere in the UK, the Mental Health and Money Advice service says Wales is "exactly the same as England" and Northern Ireland uses the same system as England and Wales³.

The earnings limit determines whether a carer qualifies at all, so a change in weekly earnings can move a household in or out of entitlement². The Scottish Carer Supplement is paid automatically alongside Carer Support Payment without a separate application, and Carer Additional Person Payment adds £10.40 a week for those caring for more than one person². Young carers aged 16 to 19 who provide support averaging 16 hours a week can receive £405.10 a year, which Social Security Scotland says can be spent on whatever the young person wants².

What happens next

No completion date for the replacement of Carer's Allowance across Scotland has been reported in these sources. Social Security Scotland's Carers Week material was published on 8 June 2026 and sets out the four payments then available². Carers already receiving Carer Support Payment who want to switch to weekly in advance payments are directed to contact Social Security Scotland¹.