Attendance Allowance with no NINO

Hello,
I have got a client in his late 80s who wants to claim Attendance Allowance but he has no NINO.  He is not a British Citizen.

He is not under immigration control, has lived in the UK 14 years with his British wife.

Is there any problem with putting in an AA claim? 

First of all, it is a condition of entitlement for AA to have a NINO, despite it being a non-contributory benefit. This is the case for a number of benefits as outlined in the Decision makers’ guide – Chapter 02 - Claims from paragraph 02176.

Moving on to applying for a NINO for these purposes, it is possible to claim a benefit and request a NINO within the same application. It is advisable (although not necessary) to state clearly on the claim form or letter that the client wants to apply for a NINO when doing so. If a claim is made, the DWP or benefit office involved should complete Form DCI1 and send it to the NINO centre. This then counts as having made an application for a NINO. When the NINO centre receives the form, it carries out checks and should contact the client to arrange an ‘evidence of identity interview’ at a local DWP office or Jobcentre Plus. He can request that the interview be done as a home visit if attending the office would be a problem.

Alternatively to the above, a person can make a NINO application directly and more information about doing so can be found on gov.uk. However, for client’s looking to make a benefit claim it is obviously much easier to make a NINO application within that benefit claim as above.

Assuming there aren’t any conditions related to immigration status, then it should be straightforward I would hope. If you did need further advice, you can always use the Age UK Email Enquiry Service for local advisers. Hope this helps.

Thanks Paul,

that is a very helpful reply

Paul, is there not also a potential issue with who is the competent state? Something in the back of my head say’s that if someone is already claiming a Pension from another country, then they may not be eligible to claim in the UK?

JACNCC - 07 June 2024 12:02 PM

Paul, is there not also a potential issue with who is the competent state? Something in the back of my head say’s that if someone is already claiming a Pension from another country, then they may not be eligible to claim in the UK?

Yes. you’re correct that If they receive a State Pension from another country and no UK State Pension, then they may not be able to claim AA due to the competent state rules.

This is from 2016 from CPAG but I think its still generally accurate https://askcpag.org.uk/content/200112/european-nationals-and-sickness-benefits

Thanks Paul - it’s one that I get caught out on sometimes.