Claiming disability premiums | Eligibility and rates 2025

If you are claiming income-related benefits, you may be eligible for extra cash through a disability premium which can help you with the costs of having a disability.

For example, if you are in a couple and you are claiming Severe Disability Premium, you can get an additional £165.80 a week on top of your income-related benefit.

This page explains how these benefits work, how much you could get and what the eligibility requirements are.

What benefits can you add disability premiums to?

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Housing Benefit
• Guarantee Pension Credit

The money you receive is added to your benefit payments automatically. This means you normally do not have to apply if you are eligible.

What are the three types of disability premiums for adults?

• Disability Premium
• Severe Disability Premium
• Enhanced Disability Premium

You can get the Disability Premium on its own and you may be eligible for Severe and Enhanced as well, depending on your circumstances.

How do I qualify for Disability Premium?

To be eligible, you or your partner must be under pension credit age and either be registered blind or claim any of these benefits:

• Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP)
• Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
• Attendance Allowance
• Constant Attendance Allowance
• Severe Disablement Allowance
• Incapacity Benefit
• War Pensioners Mobility Supplement
• Working Tax Credit (with disability element)

You may also qualify if you have been unable to work for at least a year, or 196 days if you are terminally ill.

How much is Disability Premium?

How much you can get depends on if you are single or in a couple. The rates for 2025/26 are:

• Single: £43.20 a week
• Couple: £61.65 a week

How do I qualify for Severe Disability Premium?

To be eligible for Severe Disability Premium, you must get the Disability Premium or income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). You must also receive one of the following benefits:

• Daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP)
• Middle or highest rate of the Disability Living Allowance care component
• Attendance Allowance or Constant Attendance Allowance funded with Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit or War Pension

Eligibility if you are single:

If you are single, you must normally be the only adult in the household unless they:

• receive a qualifying benefit
• are registered blind
• pay your landlord separately
• are a border or subtenant who is not a close relative

If someone is looking after you and they get Carer’s Allowance or the carers element of Universal Credit, you cannot get Severe Disability Premium.

Eligibility if you are a couple:

If you are in a couple, you must be the only two adults in the household and no one must get Carer’s Allowance or the carers element of Universal Credit for looking after both of you.

If someone gets Carer’s Allowance or the carers element of Universal Credit for looking after just one of you, you can still get the single rate.

You will get the higher weekly rate, if both you and your partner are eligible.

If only one of you meets the requirements, you can still get the single weekly rate if the other is registered blind.

How much is Severe Disability Premium?

The rates for 2025/26 are:

• Single: £82.90 a week
• Couple: £165.80 a week (if you are both eligible)

How do I qualify for Enhanced Disability Premium?

To receive Enhanced Disability Premium, you must be below pension credit age and receive either the Disability Premium or income-related ESA. Additionally, you must get one of the following benefits:

• The higher rate of the PIP daily living component
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• The highest rate of the DLA care component

You can also get this benefit if you are in the income-related ESA support group. The support group is for those who are assessed as unable to return to work because of their disability or health condition.

How much is Enhanced Disability Premium?

The rates for 2025/26 are:

• Single: £21.20 a week
• Couple: £30.25 a week (if at least one of you is eligible)

How do you make a claim?

You do not usually have to make a claim as they will be added automatically to your income-related benefit.

However, some people who are entitled to, for example, a Severe Disability Premium may not have been getting it. The good news is that it can be backdated to when you became eligible in the first place.

If you believe you should have been receiving disability premium payments, or they have not been paid, contact your local Jobcentre Plus.

How do you challenge a decision?

You may disagree with the decision made on your claim. If this is the case you can ask for the decision to be looked at again, also known as mandatory reconsideration.

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There are other benefits you may be able to claim to help with costs if you receive care at home. Please see What benefits can I claim while receiving home care? to learn more.