Support for asylum seeker & refugee families 4 mins read We’re here for all families with disabled children across the UK. That includes families seeking asylum as refugees, and families granted leave to remain through the asylum process or government resettlement schemes. In this article Money, benefits & work The financial support available from the UK government is different for people seeking asylum, people with refugee status and those with resettled status. Support for families seeking asylum People seeking asylum are subject to immigration control rules and mostly won’t be able to work or claim benefits unless they fall into certain limited exempt categories. The government offers some support to asylum seekers, including access to money and housing. See more information on gov.uk/claim-asylum/help-you-can-get Read more about working while seeking asylum, and visit Turn to Us for more information about benefits and asylum seekers. Support for families with refugee status People with refugee status – that is, those who have been granted leave to remain as a refugee – can access most benefits, as they are not subject to immigration control. This also applies to anyone granted humanitarian protection under the immigration rules. Special rules allow refugees and others granted humanitarian protection to claim UK benefits straightaway without being here for a minimum period of time. Some benefits, known as contributory benefits, require someone to have worked and paid national insurance contributions for in the UK before they can claim, and this also applies to refugees. We have lots of information on our website about benefits and tax credits for families with disabled children. Turn2Us have more information about what benefits you can get claim if you are a refugee. Read about your rights after you get refugee status from Citizen’s Advice. Your child’s education Children who are asylum seekers or refugees of compulsory school – that’s age five-16 – must receive education, which will usually be at a school. Local authorities must provide school places. We have information on our website about how schools across the UK support disabled children and those with special/additional support/learning needs. Help with childcare All three and four-year-olds qualify for 15 hours a week free childcare. Some children will qualify from the age of two. Read more about two-year-olds that qualify on the government website. More support Migrant Help UK run the Asylum Help UK helpline. The charity Asylum Aid offers independent advice for asylum seekers. Help for Ukrainian refugees The UK government is granting special visas to Ukrainians escaping the war. Money, work & benefits These three-year visas for resettled Ukrainian nationals come with no restrictions on working or accessing public funds such as benefits. Benefits As a result, there should be no restrictions on resettled Ukrainian nationals claiming state benefits in the UK. They should qualify, so long as they meet the general qualifying rules in the same way as a UK national. Special rules allow resettled Ukrainian nationals to claim UK benefits straight away without being here for a minimum period of time. This also applies to benefits administered by Social Security Scotland. At the time of writing, the government has not changed the council tax reduction rules to take into account resettled Ukrainians. This means there is a risk that they have not been in the UK long enough to claim a council tax reduction. Ukrainians who have only recently come to the UK will not have sufficient national insurance contributions to get contributory benefits. National insurance numbers You do not need a national insurance number (NINO) in order to claim state benefits. Instead, you’ll be issued a NINO as part of a successful benefit claim. Work If a national insurance number (NINO) is needed to start working rather than to claim benefits, an application can be made online at gov.uk/apply-national-insurance-number. Payments to hosts of families from Ukraine The UK government has also launched a scheme to ‘host’ resettled Ukrainians. Hosts will receive a payment from the government of £350 per month. The government’s intention is that this payment should not affect any means tested benefits or tax credits that a host receives. More support Barnados has set up the Ukrainian Support Helpline available to anyone fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. The government has published a welcome guide for families arriving in the UK from Ukraine. Ukrainian Advice Project UK. Migrant Help UK supports people who are affected by displacement and exploitation. ShareCopy URLCopied!Share via EmailShare via FacebookShare via TwitterShare via WhatsAppShare via LinkedIn
ShareCopy URLCopied!Share via EmailShare via FacebookShare via TwitterShare via WhatsAppShare via LinkedIn