Claiming housing benefit if you're away from home

You usually have to live in your home to get housing benefit.

Sometimes you can go away for a short time and still get housing benefit.

You must plan on returning to live in your normal home.

Getting housing benefit for up to 13 weeks

You can get housing benefit for up to 13 weeks if you stay in England, Wales or Scotland.   

You can be away for any reason but you must intend to return before 13 weeks.

Sentenced prisoners

You can continue to get housing benefit if your sentence is less than 6 months.

The housing benefit team look at your earliest release date to decide if you're likely to return home within 13 weeks.

Any time spent as a remand prisoner counts towards the 13 weeks.

Getting housing benefit for up to 52 weeks

Sometimes you can keep getting housing benefit for up to a year if you are away. 

Examples include if you are:

• in hospital or residential care

• bailed to stay at a different address

• a remand prisoner who has not been convicted or sentenced

• living away from home because of domestic abuse or fear of violence

• caring for someone or looking after a child whose parent is in hospital

You must intend to return home within the year. The place where you stay needs to be in England, Scotland or Wales.

Going abroad for up to 4 weeks

Most people can only get housing benefit for up to 4 weeks if you go abroad.

Abroad means outside of England, Scotland or Wales. Going to Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man counts as going abroad.

You must return within 4 weeks.

Going abroad for up to 8 weeks

You can get housing benefit for up to 8 weeks if you have to go abroad because a close relative has died.

Close relatives include:

• your partner

• children and step children

• parents and step parents

• brothers and sisters

Partners of your brothers, sisters and children also count.

The housing benefit team decide if it reasonable for you to be away for more than 4 weeks, so let them know before you go. Tell them about any practical, religious or cultural reasons which mean you have to be away for longer than 4 weeks.

Going abroad for up to 6 months

You can get housing benefit for up to 26 weeks if you're abroad because:

• you, your partner or child are getting medical treatment abroad

• you're living abroad because of domestic abuse or fear of violence

You should be likely to return within 26 weeks.

If household members are away

Your housing benefit depends on how many people you can claim for.

You can usually claim for a partner or dependent child who is away for a short time in England, Scotland or Wales. They must plan to return home within 52 weeks.

There is no limit on the time you can claim for if your child or step child is away with the armed forces. They must intend to return home when their service away ends.

You can usually claim for an adult household member who is away for a short time. The council looks at the reason they are away and when they plan to return.

Working out how long you'll be away

Your time away is counted from the day you leave your home and ends when you come back.

Coming home for at least 24 hours can be enough to end the period that counts as time away. 

If you leave your home again, you start a new period of time away.

Tell the council what is happening

Tell the housing benefit office:

• why you're going away

• when you'll return

Let them know if your plans change while you're away.  For example, if you'll be away for longer or you decide not to return.

You might be overpaid housing benefit if you do not report a change. Overpayments usually have to be paid back.