PIP – Overview

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can help with extra living costs if you have: 

• a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability
• difficulty undertaking certain everyday tasks or getting around because of your condition

Eligibility

You can get PIP if all of the following apply to you:

• you’re 16 or over
• you have a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability
• you have difficulty doing certain everyday tasks or getting around
• you expect the difficulties to last for at least 12 months from when they started
• You must also be under State Pension age if you’ve not received PIP before. If you’re over State Pension age, you can instead apply for Attendance Allowance. Or if you’ve received PIP before, you can still make a new claim if you were eligible for it in the year before you reached State Pension age.
• You can receive PIP whether or not you’re working, irrespective of whether you have savings or are getting most other benefits.

How PIP works?

There are 2 parts to PIP:

• a daily living part – if you require help with everyday tasks
• a mobility part – if you require help with getting around

Whether you get one or both parts and how much you may receive is dependent on the difficulty you have with everyday tasks and getting around.

The daily living part of PIP

You may be entitled to receive the daily living part of PIP if you need help with:

• eating, drinking or preparing food
• washing, bathing and using the toilet
• dressing and undressing
• reading and communicating
• managing your medicines or treatments
• making decisions about money
• socialising and being around other people

The mobility part of PIP

You may be entitled to receive the mobility part of PIP if you need help with: 

• planning a route and following it
• physically moving around
• leaving your home

You do not have to have a physical disability to get the mobility part of PIP. You may also be eligible if you have difficulty getting around because of a cognitive or mental health condition, such as anxiety, depression, learning difficulties, etc.

How much can one get?

The amount of PIP you may be awarded is dependent on how difficult you find: 

• everyday activities (‘daily living’ tasks)
• getting around (‘mobility’ tasks)

PIP amounts for 2022:

The rates for PIP will rise with inflation each year.

How is PIP paid?

PIP is normally paid every 4-weeks into your nominated bank account.