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The European Court of Justice decided in October 2007 that certain disability and carers benefits are sickness benefits and may be paid to people who leave the UK to live elsewhere in the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
The decision affects:
The mobility component of Disability Living Allowance has not been affected by this judgement.
There are four main groups of people who may continue to receive these benefits if they move from the UK to live in another EEA state or Switzerland. The EEA consists of the 27 member states of the European Union plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
You may continue to receive these benefits if:
The exportability team at the Department for Work and Pensions can check your National Insurance records for you.
If you can get a sickness benefit from another EEA state or Switzerland or if you work in another EEA state or Switzerland, this may affect whether you can take the disability benefit with you when you move.
If you are entitled as a family member, whether you can take the disability benefit with you when you move may also be affected if your spouse, civil partner or parent can get a sickness benefit or works in another EEA state or Switzerland.
If you are in receipt of a retirement pension or invalidity benefit from another EEA state or Switzerland, you may be entitled to a disability benefit from that country rather than from the UK.
You must still meet the usual entitlement conditions for the benefits you wish to take with you. The only difference is that after you have moved you no longer have to:
If you receive certain benefits, including State Pension, that are paid at a rate that is the same or more than Carer's Allowance, you may not receive payment of Carer's Allowance.
If you can take your benefits with you when you move to live in another EEA state or Switzerland, the length of time that you will continue to be paid depends on your circumstances. If your needs or circumstances change, this may affect how long your benefit is paid.
If you are in receipt of 'relevant benefits' from the UK, your disability benefit will be paid for as long as you remain in receipt of one of those benefits, or the duration of your current disability benefit award if shorter.
If you have paid enough National Insurance Contributions to be able to claim a contributions-based sickness benefit, your benefit will be paid for as long as you remain insured from these contributions, or the duration of your award if shorter.
If you are claiming as a family member of:
If you can get a sickness benefit or retirement pension from another EEA state or Switzerland or if you work in another EEA state or Switzerland, this may affect whether you can continue to get your disability benefit from the UK.
If you are entitled as a family member, whether you can continue to get the disability benefit may also be affected if your spouse, civil partner or parent can get a sickness benefit or starts work in another EEA state or Switzerland.
If you are moving to live in another EEA state or Switzerland, you need to notify the exportability team of this change of circumstances.
When you contact the exportability team, tell them:
If you are moving to live in another EEA state or Switzerland and think you might be entitled as a family member, also tell them:
If you think you may be affected by the court's decision and are unsure about what to do, or if you need any further information, you should contact the exportability team.
If you have already contacted the exportability team about the judgement, you do not need to contact them again.
If you ask to export your disability benefit and you do not satisfy the relevant conditions, your application will be disallowed. You will be able to ask for a reconsideration and appeal against that decision within certain deadlines.
If your Disability Living Allowance or Attendance Allowance stopped when you moved abroad, you may have made a new claim or requested reinstatement of a benefit.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has selected a small number of these appeals which share common issues (known as lead cases). These have been sent for tribunal hearings. The DWP has requested that similar cases are suspended until the tribunal has made a decision.
The tribunal will hear these cases in March 2010. If you have made an appeal, you will be updated as soon as the tribunal has made a decision, expected to be April 2010 at the earliest.
