REVENUES & BENEFITS SECTION
Non-dependants
NON-DEPENDANTS
Who are non-dependants?
Non-dependants are people over the age of 18 who live
in your household, who are not dependant upon you and
who do not pay you rent. They could, for example, be
parents, adult children or other relatives or friends.
If you have a non-dependant in your household, we may
reduce the amount of Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax
Reduction you are entitled to.
The amount we take off your benefit depends on the
circumstances of the non-dependant and how much
income or capital they have. The Government sets the
level of non-dependant deductions that are normally
changed each April.
Who are not non-dependants?
The following people are not classed as non-dependants:
• People under 18 for whom you are claiming benefit
• Lodgers and boarders who pay you rent and have, for
example, a rent book
• Tenants or sub-tenants
• People who own all or part of your home (e.g. a joint
owner or joint tenant)
• Professional carers
What is a non-dependant deduction?
A non-dependant deduction is the amount we deduct
from your normal Housing Benefit or Council Tax
Reduction. There has been a change to the rates of non
dependant deductions from 1 April 2013, details of which
are included in this leaflet. You may want to take account
of the non-dependant deduction when you decide how
much money each non-dependant who resides in your
home gives you.
NON-DEPENDANTS
How much is a non-dependant
deduction?
The amount of the non-dependant deduction
depends upon the amount of gross income (before
deductions such as Income Tax, National Insurance etc.)
that the non-dependant has. We will ask you to provide
proof of the non-dependant’s income and savings. If you
fail to provide proof we may have to reduce your
entitlement by the highest non-dependant deduction.
There is a table within this leaflet which shows the
current rates of non-dependant deductions.
When don’t we make a
non-dependant deduction?
We don’t make a deduction from your normal benefit
entitlement if you or your partner, if you have one, are
registered blind or receive Attendance Allowance or the
Care Component of Disability Living Allowance.
We don’t take anything off your Housing Benefit if the
non-dependant is:
• Under 25 and receiving Income Support, Jobseekers
Allowance (Income Based) or the main phase of
Income Related Employment & Support Allowance
• In receipt of Pension Credit
• On a youth training scheme
• Usually living somewhere else i.e. at University
• In prison or
• A student (unless the student is working during the
summer holidays)
Also, as you can see from the table in this leaflet, we
don’t take anything off your Council Tax Reduction if the
non-dependant is in receipt of Income Support or
Jobseekers Allowance (Income Based) as well as any of
the above.
NON-DEPENDANTS
Deferred deductions
If you or your partner, if you have one, are 65 or over and
you have a non-dependant living in your household, we
can defer any increase in the amount we take off your
normal benefit entitlement when the non-dependant has
a change in their income or when they have just moved
in.
If the change in the non-dependants income takes them
into a higher income band (see the table in this leaflet) or
if they have just moved in we can defer the increase in
the deduction we make from your normal benefit for 26
weeks.
Non-dependant couples
If you have more than one non-dependant living in your
household and they are married to each other or living
together as a married couple, we only make one nondependant deduction. The amount we deduct from your
normal benefit entitlement is based on their joint gross
incomes including Child Benefit and Tax Credits.
NON-DEPENDANTS
Two households
If you share your home with someone who is also a joint
tenant or a joint owner and the non-dependant shares
your home with both of you, we can apportion the
deduction between you. Please ask a member of staff for
further details.
Second Adult Rebate
If you live on your own and you have someone over the
age of 18 come to live with you, you may lose your 25%
Single Person Discount. In this case you could qualify for
Second Adult Rebate but this depends on the
circumstances of the person who comes to live with you.
NON-DEPENDANTS
Non-dependant deductions April 2013
Non-dependant status
Income Band
Aged 18 to 24 and in receipt
of Income Support,
Jobseekers Allowance
(income based) or
Employment Support
Allowance (income related)
Aged 25 or over and in
receipt of Income Support
or Jobseekers Allowance
(income based)
Aged over 18 not working or
working less than 16 hours
per week
In receipt of Pension Credit
In receipt of main phase
Income Related Employment
& Support Allowance
Aged 18 or over and working
over 16 hours each week
Income less than £126.00
per week before deductions
Aged 18 or over and working
over 16 hours each week
Income between
£126.00 – £186.00 per
week before deductions
Aged 18 or over and working
over 16 hours each week
Income between
£186.00 – £242.00 per
week before deductions
Aged 18 or over and working
over 16 hours each week
Income between
£242.00 – £322.00 per
week before deductions
Aged 18 or over and working
over 16 hours each week
Income between
£322.00 – £401.00 per
week before deductions
Aged 18 or over and working
over 16 hours each week
Income more than
£401.00 per week before
deductions
NON-DEPENDANTS
Weekly deduction from
Housing Benefit
Weekly deduction from
Council Tax Reduction
NIL
NIL
£13.60
NIL
£13.60
£3.65
NIL
NIL
£13.60
3.65
£13.60
£3.65
£31.25
£3.65
£42.90
£7.25
£70.70
£7.25
£79.95
£9.15
£87.75
£10.95
REVENUES & BENEFITS SECTION
Useful numbers
Citizens Advice Bureau
08444 111444
Jobcentre Plus
0800 055 6688 (benefit enquries)
0845 604 3719 (main switchboard)
Pension Service (general enquiries)
0845 606 0265
Working Tax Credit
0845 300 3900
We want our customers to be able
to access information and services
as easily as possible, in ways that
suit them.
We can provide information in different formats
or give other assistance where needed.
Fraud Hotline
Do you know someone who is falsely
claiming benefit? Don’t let them get away with
it. Ring the Fraud Hotline on 01707 357606.
Working in Partnership with Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council
02841/Steria-Benefits/Feb13/N/P
Please call 01707 357000 or email
[email protected]