Carer's Allowance weekly earnings limit to rise from £151 to £196

The weekly earnings limit for Carer's Allowance will rise from £151 to £196, the government announced in the Autumn Budget 2024¹. The change takes effect in April 2025². The limit is being set at the amount earned by someone working 16 hours a week at the National Living Wage, and the government said the weekly earnings limit will then increase in future in line with future National Living Wage increases¹.

The National Living Wage itself rises from £11.44 to £12.21 an hour (6.7%) for those aged 21 and over in April 2025¹. Turn2us gives the National Minimum Wage increase as 6% overall, with £12.21 an hour for people aged 21 and over, £10.00 for 18 to 20 year olds and £6.40 for apprentices and those under 18². Entitledto reports the apprentice rate rising from £6.40 to £7.55 (18.0%)¹. The two sources differ on the apprentice rate: Turn2us lists £6.40 as the new figure, while entitledto lists £6.40 as the old figure and £7.55 as the new one.

Carer's Allowance is paid at £83.30 a week, is not means-tested, and requires care of at least 35 hours a week for someone receiving a qualifying benefit³. Claimants must earn less than the weekly limit³. The same page also states, in a separate section, that claimants can only claim if they earn less than £139 a week³, a figure that does not match the £196 limit given elsewhere on that page and in the other sources.

The government also announced before the Budget that it would launch an independent review into the cliff-edge in the current system when earnings exceed the limit. The review will look at Carer's Allowance overpayments, their causes, and recommend potential solutions for ministers to consider¹. Carers UK said before the Budget that this would be one of the biggest rises since the benefit was introduced in 1976¹.

Why it matters for households

The limit governs how much a carer can earn from work and still receive Carer's Allowance. Raising it from £151 to £196 a week means carers can earn £45 a week more before the benefit stops¹. Because the limit is now tied to 16 hours at the National Living Wage, it should move with future wage increases rather than being set separately¹.

The change sits alongside the wider April 2025 uprating, in which working-age benefits rise by 1.7% and pension-age benefits, including the Minimum Guarantee element of Pension Credit, rise by 4.1%¹. Carer's Allowance is not means-tested, but it counts as income for Universal Credit, reducing the amount of that award, and it can also affect other benefits including State Retirement Pension, contributory Employment and Support Allowance, contribution-based Jobseeker's Allowance and Maternity Allowance³. Claimants may qualify for the carer element of Universal Credit, worth £201.68 a month in 2025-26, and for a Carers' Premium or Carers' Addition on Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support³. Each week of Carer's Allowance also brings National Insurance credits³.

In Scotland, Carer's Allowance is being replaced by Carer Support Payment, and the transfer of claimants was expected to be complete by March 2025². Carers in Scotland receiving either payment can also get Carer's Allowance Supplement, paid twice a year³.

What happens next

The £196 limit applies from April 2025². The independent review into overpayments and the earnings cliff-edge will report with recommendations for ministers to consider; no date for it has been reported¹.