Backdating benefit

If you have a good reason for not claiming earlier, you can ask us to consider backdating your benefits. This section explains about backdating benefit. You can get more information from the Benefits Office.

When will my benefit start?

Your benefit will normally start from the Monday after we receive your claim. If you receive either Income Support (IS), Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA-IB), and you make a claim within one calendar month of your application for IS, ESA or JSA-IB, your benefit claim will normally start on the Monday after IS, ESA or JSA-IB is awarded.  If you are in receipt of pension credit we may be able to backdate your claim for up to 3 months without having to fulfil the conditions set out below.  We will tell you if this is the case.

Can you backdate my benefit?

We will not normally backdate benefit. However, if you can show that you had good reasons for not claiming benefit earlier, we will backdate your benefit. (We can only backdate benefit for up to 6 months from the date we receive your claim for backdating.)

What do you consider to be good reasons?

Unfortunately, the benefit regulations do not say what are, and what are not, 'good reasons' so we must consider each case individually. Before we can backdate benefit, we must be satisfied that anyone else of the same age and with the same health and experience as you would probably also not have been able to claim.

Not knowing that you could claim benefit earlier will not normally be considered as a 'good reason'. However, not claiming because you were in hospital or had severe health problems, or a close relative had died, could be considered as 'good reasons'. 'Good reasons' must apply for the whole period you're asking us to backdate your benefit for.

How do I apply for backdating?

If you want to ask us to backdate your Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit, you should complete part 15 of the application form, or you should write to us telling us the date you want benefit from and your reasons for not claiming at the right time.  You will be asked to provide any relevant supporting evidence, for example, a doctor's letter.