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Carer's Allowance calculator

Carer's Allowance is £86.45 a week if you care for someone at least 35 hours a week. The earnings limit is a cliff edge, not a taper: one penny over and the whole payment stops.

Uses 2026/27 tax year rates, checked 2 August 2026.

1. Do you care for someone at least 35 hours a week?

This includes practical help, supervision, and time spent taking them to appointments.

2. Does the person you care for get a qualifying benefit?

They must get at least one of these for you to qualify.

  • • PIP daily living (either rate)
  • • Attendance Allowance (either rate)
  • • DLA care component at the middle or highest rate
  • • Constant Attendance Allowance
  • • Armed Forces Independence Payment
  • • Child Disability Payment (middle or highest care rate)
  • • Adult Disability Payment (daily living, either rate)
3. Your earnings

Employed or self-employed earnings only. Pensions, savings interest and other benefits do not count here.

£
£

Tax, NI, half of pension contributions, some care costs.

4. Are you in full-time education?

21 hours or more a week of supervised study disqualifies you.

What this tool does not do

  • It does not make a decision. Only the DWP, your council or the NHS can do that.
  • It does not model the overlapping benefit rules with the State Pension in full, or the effect on the cared-for person's severe disability premium.
  • Scotland replaced Carer’s Allowance with Carer Support Payment. The earnings rules are similar but the claim route is different.
  • It is an estimate based on published rules and 2026/27 rates, not advice.

Common questions

Is Carer's Allowance means tested?

Not on your savings or capital, which are ignored entirely. It is affected by your earnings: if you earn more than £204.00 a week after tax, National Insurance and allowable expenses, you get nothing at all. There is no taper, it is a cliff edge.

Is Carer's Allowance taxable?

Yes. Carer's Allowance counts as taxable income. Most carers pay no tax on it because their total income is under the Personal Allowance, but it does count towards it. It also counts as income for means-tested benefits.

Can I work and claim?

Yes, as long as your net earnings stay at or under £204.00 a week. You can deduct income tax, National Insurance, half of any pension contributions, and some care costs for the person you care for or your children while you work.

What if I get the State Pension?

Carer's Allowance and the State Pension overlap. If your State Pension is more than the Carer's Allowance rate you usually cannot be paid Carer's Allowance on top, but you may still get an 'underlying entitlement' which can increase Pension Credit. It is still worth claiming.

Does claiming affect the person I care for?

It can. If they get a severe disability premium or the severe disability addition in Pension Credit, your claim can stop that, which may leave the household worse off overall. Check the combined position before claiming.

Where these rules come from