Pension Age Disability Payment

Who can get PADP?

To get PADP you must:

have reached pension age when you claim; if you have not reached pension age, you should claim adult disability payment;
pass at least one of the disability tests;
meet the qualifying period condition;
pass the residence and presence tests; and
not be subject to immigration control.

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PADP disability tests

Lower rate

For the lower rate of PADP, you must meet one of the following conditions. You need:

during the day:

frequent attention throughout the day in connection with your bodily functions; or
continual supervision throughout the day to avoid substantial danger to you or others.

or during the night:

prolonged or repeated attention in connection with your bodily functions; or
another person to be awake for a prolonged period or at frequent intervals to watch over you to avoid substantial danger to you or others.

Higher rate

For the higher rate of PADP, you must meet either of the following. You:

have one of the day needs and one of the night needs conditions shown above; or
are terminally ill.

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PADP qualifying period condition

You will need to have met the disability tests for six months before you can be paid. This rule does not apply if you are terminally ill.

If you already have lower rate PADP, you can qualify for the higher rate after you have needed the greater level of attention or supervision for six months.

PADP residence and presence tests

To qualify for PADP, you must satisfy the following residence and presence tests:

You must be ordinarily resident (ie normally live) in Scotland;
You must be habitually resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Republic of Ireland or the Isle of Man (see below);
You must normally have been present in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Republic of Ireland or the Isle of Man for 26 weeks in the last 52 weeks before claiming. This is called the ‘past presence’ test. The past presence test does not apply if you are terminally ill or have been granted refugee leave or humanitarian protection (or are the dependant of someone with such leave or protection); and
You must not be subject to immigration control.

There is no legal definition of 'habitual residence'. Relevant factors are where you normally live, where you expect to live in future, your reasons for coming to this country, the length of time spent abroad before you came here, and any ties you still have with the country where you have come from.

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How much is PADP?

Weekly lower rate - £73.90 (from 7 April 2025)
Weekly higher rate - £110.40 (from 7 April 2025)

PADP is tax free and not means tested.

Any savings you have do not affect your PADP.

How to claim PADP

You can claim online at: www.mygov.scot/pension-age-disability-payment/how-to-apply. Alternatively, call Social Security Scotland (0800 182 2222). In either case, the application is in two parts, unless you are terminally ill, in which case only the first part will apply.

If you telephone, Social Security Scotland will ask for basic details about you on the phone; this is Part 1 of the application. Social Security Scotland will then send you an application form; this is Part 2. You will have eight weeks in which to complete and return this.

If you are claiming online, you will need to create a username and password to register your application. Keep a record of these in a safe place; you can use them to come back to the application at any time. You do not need to complete the application in one go. You will have two weeks to submit Part 1 of the application, and eight weeks to submit Part 2.

If you need more time to complete Part 2, contact Social Security Scotland.

If you use British Sign Language, you may be able to start the claim by using a video relay service (https://contactscotland-bsl.org).

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Keeping a diary

Writing a short diary of your day-to-day needs can lend support to your PADP claim. It can also be important when trying to explain needs that fluctuate either during a single day or over a longer period.

One-day diary

The simplest form of diary would be an account of your needs over a typical day. Start from the time you get up in the morning, through a 24-hour period, ending with the time you get up the following morning. Try to list all the times when you need help from someone or you have difficulties because there is no one around to help. When you write something down, try to answer the following questions:

what help do you need?
why do you need the help?
at what time do you need help? and
how long do you need the help for?

If your needs vary from day to day, keep the diary over a few days to get a clearer picture of your needs.

Long-term diary

Long-term diaries can be useful when explaining more sporadic problems caused by your condition, such as stumbles, falls or fits. If you need continual supervision or watching over, such a diary can show exactly what happened or what could have happened if someone had not been there to intervene.

Making use of the diary

Once you have finished the diary, write your name and National Insurance number on it and make several copies of it. Attach a copy to Part 2 of your application; keep a copy for yourself. Finally, you should send copies of the diary to anyone that you have listed in your application, such as the GP, consultant or specialist nurse.

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PADP in hospital

Both the day you are admitted and the day you are discharged count as days out of hospital.

PADP stops after a total of four weeks (either in one stay, or several stays, where the gaps between stays are no more than four weeks each time).

If you claim PADP when you are already in hospital, it cannot be paid until you leave.

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Glossary

Attention

This is help of an active nature needed to be given in your presence. This can include help given to wash, dress or to go to the toilet. It can also be more indirect help, such as signing, reading aloud or prompting and encouragement.

Bodily functions

These include hearing, eating, seeing, washing, reading, communicating, walking, drinking, sitting, sleeping, dressing or undressing, using the toilet, shaving, shampooing and help with medication. Anything to do with the body and how it works can count.

Continual

Means regular checking but not non-stop supervision; it does not have to be constant.

Frequent

Means several times, not once or twice.

Needs

This is help that is reasonably needed, not what is actually given, nor what is medically essential. This is help to lead as normal a life as possible. This includes help you need outside your home. For example, you can be given help to take part in ‘reasonable’ social activities.

Night

This is when the household has closed down for the night. It is generally the time when an adult is in bed but must be more or less within night-time hours - generally between the hours of 11pm and 7am.

Prolonged

Means some little time (at least 20 minutes).

Repeated

Means two or more times.

Substantial danger

The danger must be real, not just remotely possible. The fact that an incident may be isolated or infrequent does not rule this out. As well as looking at the chances of the incident happening, the Social Security Scotland case manager must look at the likely consequences if it does. If the consequences could be dire, then the frequency with which it is likely to happen becomes less relevant.

Supervision

This is watching over, ready to intervene.

Terminally ill

You are considered to be terminally ill if you have a progressive disease which can reasonably be expected to cause your death. Ask your GP, consultant or Macmillan nurse if they would complete a ‘Benefits Assessment Special Rules in Scotland’ (BASRiS) form to confirm this. They should have a supply of these forms. They can send the completed form to Social Security Scotland. No further supporting information is needed.

Throughout

This means spread over the day.

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Find out more

Advice

Use advicelocal to get advice in your area.

Contents

PADP qualifying period condition

PADP residence and presence tests