Carer's Allowance Calculator UK 2026

What Is Carer's Allowance?

Carer's Allowance is a weekly benefit paid by the DWP to people who provide a substantial amount of care (35 or more hours per week) to someone with a disability or health condition who receives a qualifying disability benefit. It is the main benefit for carers in the UK and recognises the significant contribution unpaid carers make to society.

Carer's Allowance is not means-tested on savings — only on earned income. However, it is subject to an overlapping benefits rule that can affect recipients of State Pension and other benefits. It also earns Class 1 National Insurance credits, which count towards your State Pension entitlement.

Carer's Allowance Rate 2025/26

Carer's Allowance is uprated in line with CPI inflation each April. It can be paid weekly into your bank account or every four weeks.

Who Qualifies for Carer's Allowance?

• You must be 18 or over
• You must spend at least 35 hours per week caring for someone
• The person you care for must receive a qualifying disability benefit: PIP (daily living component, either rate), Attendance Allowance (either rate), DLA (care component at middle or highest rate), Armed Forces Independence Payment, or Constant Attendance Allowance at or above the normal maximum rate
• Your net weekly earnings must not exceed £151
• You must not be in full-time education (21 or more hours of supervised study per week)
• You must be ordinarily resident in Great Britain

Carer's Allowance is not means-tested on savings or non-earned income. Only your earned employment or self-employment income counts towards the earnings limit.

The Earnings Limit — £151 per Week Net

The earnings limit is one of the most misunderstood aspects of Carer's Allowance. The £151/week limit is based on your net earnings after deducting:

• Income tax
• National Insurance contributions (employee's)
• Half of any pension contributions you make
• Any business expenses if self-employed (reasonable costs directly related to the work)
• In some cases, the cost of paid care for the person you look after while you work (subject to limits)

If your net earnings are exactly at or below £151 in a particular week, you retain your Carer's Allowance for that week. If they exceed £151 even by a penny in any week, you lose the entire Carer's Allowance for that week — there is no gradual taper. This all-or-nothing rule creates what is known as the "carer's trap".

State Pension and the Overlapping Benefits Rule

Carer's Allowance is subject to the overlapping benefit rule. This means you cannot receive the full amount of both Carer's Allowance and certain other benefits simultaneously. The most common situation affecting carers is State Pension.

If your State Pension (currently up to £230.25/week for the full new State Pension in 2025/26) exceeds the Carer's Allowance rate (£81.90/week), you will receive only your State Pension — Carer's Allowance will not be paid on top. The two cannot simply be added together.

Other benefits affected by the overlapping rule include: contributory Employment and Support Allowance, Maternity Allowance and Incapacity Benefit.

Understanding Underlying Entitlement

Even if you cannot receive Carer's Allowance payments because your State Pension (or other overlapping benefit) is higher, you may still have an "underlying entitlement" to Carer's Allowance. This is important because:

• Underlying entitlement can trigger the Carer Premium (or Carer Addition) in means-tested benefits including Pension Credit, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction — worth around £45.60/week extra in Pension Credit
• Underlying entitlement earns Class 1 NI credits which count towards your State Pension
• Underlying entitlement triggers the carer element in Universal Credit (£198.31/month)

In short, even if you never receive a penny of Carer's Allowance itself due to overlapping benefits, having an underlying entitlement can still significantly increase your total income through other benefit routes. It is always worth claiming.

Carer's Credit — NI Credits for Carers

Carer's Credit is a National Insurance credit available to people who care for someone for 20 or more hours per week but who do not qualify for (or receive) Carer's Allowance. It fills gaps in your NI record to protect your State Pension entitlement.

You may qualify for Carer's Credit if you:

• Earn too much to receive Carer's Allowance (over £151/week net)
• Care for someone for 20–34 hours per week (below the 35-hour CA threshold)
• Are in full-time education and cannot claim CA
• Have an underlying entitlement to CA but are not actually paid it

Carer's Credit does not provide a cash payment — it only adds credits to your NI record. But this can be extremely valuable in retirement, as each year of NI credits can be worth around £329 in annual State Pension.

How Carer's Allowance Affects Other Benefits

Universal Credit

Receiving Carer's Allowance (or having an underlying entitlement) triggers the Carer Element in Universal Credit — an additional £198.31/month on top of your standard allowance. If you are on UC, this is the most valuable financial consequence of having a CA entitlement.

Pension Credit

A Carer's Allowance underlying entitlement adds the Carer Addition (around £45.60/week) to your Pension Credit calculation. Many pensioner carers miss this because they assume their State Pension "blocks" any benefit from Carer's Allowance.

Housing Benefit and Council Tax

CA or an underlying entitlement may add a carer premium to means-tested Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction calculations. Contact your local council's benefits team for your specific entitlement.

The Person You Care For

If you receive Carer's Allowance for someone, they may lose the Severe Disability Premium or Severe Disability Addition in their own means-tested benefits. Always check the combined impact before claiming CA — a welfare rights adviser can help you calculate the net effect.

Your Rights at Work as a Carer

Carer's Leave Act 2023

Since 6 April 2024, employees with caring responsibilities have the right to take up to one week (5 working days) of unpaid carer's leave per year. This right applies from the first day of employment — there is no qualifying period. You can take it flexibly in full or half days.

You are protected from dismissal, detriment or being selected for redundancy because you have taken or requested carer's leave. Your employment rights (including accrual of annual leave and continuity of employment) are protected during carer's leave.

Flexible Working

Since 6 April 2024, all employees have the right to request flexible working from their first day of employment (previously required 26 weeks' service). Employers must respond within two months and provide reasons if they refuse. This change benefits carers who need flexibility to manage caring responsibilities alongside work.

Emergency Leave

You have the right to take a reasonable amount of time off work (unpaid, unless your employer's policy is more generous) to deal with an emergency involving a dependent — including someone you care for.

The Carer's Trap — Understanding the All-or-Nothing Earnings Rule

The "carer's trap" describes the situation where carers who work part-time are constrained to a very narrow earnings band due to the rigid £151/week earnings limit. Unlike Universal Credit (which has a taper rate allowing gradual reduction), Carer's Allowance operates as a binary benefit — you either receive the full £81.90 or nothing at all.

This creates a perverse incentive: a carer earning £150/week net receives £81.90 in CA (total income: £231.90), but a carer earning £152/week net receives no CA at all (total income: £152.00). Earning just £2 more means losing £81.90 per week.

For this reason, many carers who work must carefully manage their hours and pay to stay just below the earnings limit. This severely restricts the ability of carers to increase their working hours, develop their careers or earn more — effectively trapping many in low-paid, part-time work.

Frequently Asked Questions