When someone moves into a care home, most of their benefits keep going, but a few stop on a fixed date and one or two change quietly in the background. The date that matters most is day 28. If the council or the NHS is paying for the place, the disability benefits that help with care costs end after 28 days. If your relative pays the fees themselves, they carry on.
Miss the phone calls and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) can ask for money back later. This guide goes benefit by benefit, says who to tell and when, and links out to our deeper articles where one benefit needs more than a paragraph. It covers England; Scotland and Wales differ in places.
The short version: it depends on who pays the fees
Almost every rule below turns on one question: is your relative a self-funder (paying the whole fee from their own money), or is the local council, or NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC), paying all or part of it?
GOV.UK's guidance on claiming benefits if you're going into a care home says people who pay privately may keep Attendance Allowance, both parts of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and the severe disability addition in Pension Credit. If the council or NHS funds the place, most of those stop within 28 days. Our guide to self-funder versus council-funded care explains how that status is decided.
Benefit-by-benefit table
| Benefit | Self-funding | Council or CHC funded | Who to tell |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Pension | Continues in full | Continues; counts as income in the council's assessment | The Pension Service |
| Pension Credit | Continues; amount may change | Continues; counts as income in the assessment | The Pension Service |
| Attendance Allowance (AA) | Continues | Stops after 28 days | AA helpline (DWP) |
| PIP daily living | Continues | Stops after 28 days | DWP PIP service |
| PIP mobility | Continues | May continue | DWP PIP service |
| Housing Benefit | Ends for a permanent move | Ends for a permanent move | The council |
| Council Tax Reduction | Ends for the home they leave | Ends for the home they leave | The council |
| Carer's Allowance (family carer) | Can continue if the carer still gives 35 hours a week | Stops when the qualifying benefit stops | Carer's Allowance Unit (DWP) |
The sections below explain the rows that raise the most questions.
State Pension and Pension Credit
State Pension keeps being paid. The full new State Pension is £241.30 a week for 2026/27, and your relative's own amount depends on their National Insurance record.
What changes is how it is treated. For a council-funded resident, the council counts State Pension and other pensions as income in the financial assessment, then leaves a protected weekly amount for personal spending. That amount is the Personal Expenses Allowance, £31.80 a week in 2026/27. The rest goes towards the fees. Our care home means test guide shows the full calculation, and the Personal Expenses Allowance article explains why that figure is fixed.
A self-funder is not assessed in this way. They keep their pension and pay the bill from it and from savings.
Pension Credit also continues. GOV.UK says the amount may change, because a resident is treated as a single person from the day they move in. That matters most for a couple where one partner stays at home, as both claims may need reviewing. Where Attendance Allowance stops, the severe disability addition in Pension Credit is likely to stop with it, because it depends on a qualifying disability benefit being paid. Independent Age's guide to benefits in hospital and care homes gives a fuller breakdown.
If your relative gets Pension Credit, their capital is probably low. Ask the council about funding early rather than waiting for savings to run out.
Attendance Allowance and PIP
This is the benefit with the 28-day rule, and the one families most often get wrong.
- Self-funding: Attendance Allowance (£76.70 lower rate, £114.60 higher rate in 2026/27) carries on and can go towards the fees.
- Council or CHC funded: it stops after 28 days. The count starts when the funding begins, not on the day of admission. That matters if someone starts as a self-funder and later runs out of savings.
- PIP: the daily living part follows the same 28-day logic. GOV.UK says the mobility part may be kept even when the council funds the place.
We do not repeat the detail here. Our guide to Attendance Allowance in a care home covers the rates, the 28-day rule, respite stays and what happens if you keep being paid. If the move follows a hospital admission, read Attendance Allowance and hospital stays as well, since the two 28-day rules can overlap.
Do not cancel a claim yourself. Report the move and let the DWP confirm the end date.
Housing Benefit and Council Tax
Housing Benefit for a tenant generally ends when they move permanently into a care home, because the fees now cover accommodation. If the stay is a trial, the claim may continue for a limited period. Ask the council which rule applies to your relative's dates.
Council Tax raises two separate questions:
- The care home itself. A resident is not normally billed council tax for their room, because a care home is not a separate dwelling.
- The home they left. If it is now empty because the owner or tenant moved into a care home for long-term care, most councils apply a Class E exemption, so no council tax is due while it stays empty. You usually have to apply, with proof of admission, and ask for it to be backdated to the move date. It does not cover short respite stays. For the single person discount, a relative moving in and what happens after a death, see our guide to council tax when a parent moves into a care home.
Any Council Tax Reduction your relative was getting on the old address ends with that liability. If the empty house is part of the means test, the 12-week property disregard explains how it is treated at the start.
Carer's Allowance for the family carer
If you claimed Carer's Allowance for looking after your parent at home, your own claim is affected too. It depends on the person you care for still receiving a qualifying benefit (Attendance Allowance, PIP daily living or the Disability Living Allowance care component) and on you still caring for at least 35 hours a week.
- Parent is council or CHC funded: their qualifying benefit stops after 28 days, so your Carer's Allowance stops with it.
- Parent is self-funding: the qualifying benefit may continue, so your claim can too, but only while you still provide 35 hours of care a week. That is hard to show once someone lives in a care home.
- Run-on: if your Carer's Allowance stops, the carer premium or addition in your means-tested benefits (such as Pension Credit, Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction) can be paid for eight more weeks, according to Carers UK. Universal Credit's carer element stops when the allowance ends.
Ask a Carers UK adviser or Citizens Advice if you work part-time or get other benefits, because losing Carer's Allowance can change those claims too.
Who must be told, and when
GOV.UK says you must tell the organisation that pays each benefit as soon as possible if someone goes into a care home for one night or longer. The notice should come from the claimant or whoever manages their affairs, such as an appointee or an attorney under a Lasting Power of Attorney. Do not assume the care home or the council will pass it on to the DWP.
Have these details to hand for each call:
- Full name, date of birth and National Insurance number
- The care home's name and address, and the admission date
- The previous address
- The name of the local authority involved, if the council is funding
- Whether the stay is permanent or temporary, and any hospital stays in the 28 days before admission
Notify these offices: checklist
- The Pension Service: State Pension and Pension Credit, in the week of the move.
- DWP Attendance Allowance helpline or the PIP service: on the day of the move, and again when council funding starts.
- The council's adult social care and financial assessment teams: to start the means test. They are separate from the benefits offices.
- The council's Housing Benefit and council tax teams: for the tenancy, the empty home and any reduction.
- The Carer's Allowance Unit: if a family member claims for your relative.
- Universal Credit, if a family carer claims it: through their online account, as the carer element may end.
- The bank and any appointee: so payments reach the right account and the care home is paid on time.
Keep a note of the date, the person you spoke to and what they said. If the DWP later disputes an overpayment, that record helps.
What to do in the first month
- Week 1: tell the Pension Service and the AA or PIP office about the admission.
- Before day 28: ask the council who is paying the fees, and from what date.
- Day 28 onwards: if the council is funding, expect AA and PIP daily living to end and plan for that gap.
- Within the month: apply for the Class E exemption on the empty home and end any Housing Benefit.
- Throughout: keep a record, and use our moving into a care home checklist for the non-benefit tasks.
When Attendance Allowance stops, the weekly position can change by up to £114.60. RightCareHome's Funding Report models your specific situation, including which benefits stop and what the council is likely to charge. You can also start with a free funding check. The current figures for every allowance are in our 2026/27 funding rates article.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does State Pension stop when you go into a care home?
No. State Pension continues in full whoever is paying the fees. If the council is funding the place, it counts as income in the financial assessment and most of it goes towards the fees, leaving a protected weekly amount (£31.80 in 2026/27) for personal spending.
Does Attendance Allowance stop when you move into a care home?
Only if the council or NHS Continuing Healthcare pays all or part of the fees. In that case it stops after 28 days. If your relative pays the fees themselves, it continues. See our Attendance Allowance care home guide for the detail.
Do I have to tell the DWP if my parent moves into a care home?
Yes. GOV.UK says you must tell the organisation that pays each benefit as soon as possible if someone enters a care home for one night or longer. Unreported changes can create an overpayment that has to be repaid.
Will I lose Carer's Allowance if my parent goes into a care home?
If your parent's qualifying benefit stops, so does your Carer's Allowance. That usually happens after 28 days when the council or NHS is funding the place. If your parent self-funds and keeps the benefit, you can only keep claiming while you still provide 35 hours of care a week. The carer premium or addition in means-tested benefits may be paid for eight more weeks.
Do you pay council tax when you live in a care home?
Usually not on the care home, and usually not on the empty home you left, if the council applies a Class E exemption. You normally need to apply and send proof of the admission. The exemption does not apply to short respite stays.