How to Claim Personal Independence Payment for a Disability or Health Condition

Check the PIP eligibility rules before starting

Personal Independence Payment is designed to help with extra costs when a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability affects your everyday life or ability to get around.

You can qualify if you are 16 or over, have a qualifying long-term condition or disability, have difficulty with specified daily living or mobility activities and expect those difficulties to last for at least 12 months from when they started.

You usually need to be under State Pension age when starting a new claim. If you are approaching retirement age, check your actual State Pension age rather than assuming it is the same for everyone. Helpydo also explains how to claim your State Pension when you reach State Pension age.

Explain your functional difficulties, not just your medical condition

PIP is not awarded simply because you have a particular diagnosis. DWP considers the functional impact of your condition on specified daily living and mobility activities.

The daily living activities include preparing food, eating and drinking, managing treatment, washing and bathing, using the toilet, dressing, communicating, reading, engaging with other people and making budgeting decisions. The mobility activities cover planning and following journeys and physically moving around.

For each relevant activity, the assessment considers whether you can complete it safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and within a reasonable time. Official assessment guidance defines a reasonable time as no more than twice as long as a person without the relevant disability would normally take.

Daily living and mobility are scored separately

PIP has two components: daily living and mobility. Each activity has descriptors carrying different point scores.

For each component, 8 to 11 points can qualify you for the standard rate, while 12 points or more can qualify you for the enhanced rate. Daily living points and mobility points are calculated separately, so you may receive one component or both.

Check the weekly PIP rates before you claim

For 2026 to 2027, the official weekly PIP rates are:

• Daily living standard rate: £76.70 a week.
• Daily living enhanced rate: £114.60 a week.
• Mobility standard rate: £30.30 a week.
• Mobility enhanced rate: £80.00 a week.

PIP is tax free, and your award is not reduced because of your income or savings. You can receive PIP while working.

PIP is usually paid every 4 weeks. Your decision letter tells you the date of your first payment, your regular payment day, how long the award lasts and whether it will be reviewed.

Call the DWP PIP new claims line

The standard way to begin a PIP claim in England and Wales is to call the PIP new claims line on 0800 917 2222. It is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 5pm.

Relay UK users can dial 18001 followed by 0800 917 2222. GOV.UK also provides British Sign Language video relay access and a number for people calling from abroad.

You can have another person added to the call. Someone else can also call on your behalf, but you generally need to be with them when they call.

Have your identity, bank and healthcare details ready

When the claim starts, DWP asks for basic personal and administrative information. Prepare:

• your contact details;
• your date of birth;
• your National Insurance number, if you have one;
• bank or building society details;
• your doctor or health worker's contact information;
• dates and addresses for relevant hospital or care-home stays;
• details of periods abroad lasting more than 4 weeks at a time; and
• relevant information about certain benefits or support from an EEA country or Switzerland.

A postal claim is available if you cannot claim by phone

You can start a PIP claim by post by writing that you want to make a claim and including your name and address. The letter goes to Freepost DWP PIP 1; GOV.UK says you do not need a postcode or stamp.

DWP then sends a form asking basic questions about you and your condition, followed by the form explaining how your disability affects you. Because of the extra correspondence, the postal route involves more steps than starting by phone.

Online PIP applications are available only in some areas

DWP also offers a full online PIP application in some postcode areas. You must check your postcode through the official service to find out whether you can use it.

This means PIP should not be treated as an online-only benefit. If the full online route is unavailable where you live, you can still start the claim by phone or post.

Describe what happens when you try each relevant activity

After starting the claim, you complete a form called 'How your disability affects you'. If you applied by phone, you can usually complete it online through the link DWP emails you or use the paper form. Paper forms are usually received within 2 weeks.

You should normally complete the online form or return the paper form within 1 month. If you need longer, contact the PIP enquiry line rather than simply missing the deadline.

For each relevant task, explain the actual help, supervision, prompting, aids or extra time you need. Describe what happens on difficult days and how often those difficulties occur. GOV.UK says that, to qualify, you must expect to have difficulty with tasks on more than half the days over the relevant 12-month period.

Send relevant evidence you already have

DWP says you should include supporting information if you have it. Examples include prescription lists, care plans and information from your doctor or other people involved in your care.

The evidence should help explain the effects of your condition in relation to the PIP activities. The PIP assessment focuses on functional ability rather than merely proving that a medical diagnosis exists.

If DWP or its assessment provider needs additional medical information, it may contact a healthcare professional for factual evidence.

An assessment can be in person, at home, by phone or by video

You will not necessarily have a consultation in every claim. If more information is required, you may be invited to an assessment with a health professional.

The assessment can take place at an assessment centre, at your home, over the phone or by video call and usually takes about 1 hour.

The health professional asks how your condition affects daily living and mobility and about treatment you have received or expect to receive. You may also be asked to make simple movements where relevant.

You can have another person with you, such as a friend or support worker. GOV.UK states that the audio of the assessment is recorded; if you do not want it recorded, contact the assessment provider using the details in your invitation.

There is no single guaranteed decision time for every claim

DWP does not publish one guaranteed end-to-end processing time for every individual PIP claim on the main claim service. The time depends on whether more information or an assessment is required.

When DWP has made a decision, you receive a letter telling you whether PIP has been awarded. If successful, it states the first payment date and when the claim will be reviewed.

A first PIP award can run for between 9 months and 10 years, depending on how likely your needs are to change.

Income and savings do not determine your award

You can claim PIP whether you work or not. Your income and savings do not affect the amount of PIP you receive.

You can also receive PIP alongside other benefits except Armed Forces Independence Payment. Certain overlapping disability payments can affect individual components: Constant Attendance Allowance reduces the daily living part, while War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement prevents payment of the PIP mobility part.

An award can also affect entitlement to other help. GOV.UK notes that some people receiving income-related Employment and Support Allowance or Housing Benefit may qualify for a disability premium. If relevant, see how to apply for Housing Benefit through your local council.

Check the rules if you recently lived abroad

For the standard England and Wales route, you usually need to have lived in England, Scotland or Wales for at least 2 of the previous 3 years and be living in England or Wales when you apply.

Different coordination rules can apply if you recently returned from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein. People living in some of those countries may in certain circumstances qualify only for the daily living component.

If you are not a British citizen, residence and immigration-status conditions also apply. GOV.UK states that you must normally live in, or show an intention to settle in, the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man or Channel Islands and generally must not be subject to immigration control, subject to specified exceptions.

Special rules can fast-track a PIP claim

There is a separate faster process if a medical professional says you may have 12 months or less to live. These are the Special Rules for End of Life.

You start the special-rules claim through the PIP claims line and ask a medical professional to provide an SR1 medical evidence form. Eligible special-rules claimants receive the enhanced daily living rate, while entitlement to the mobility component depends on mobility needs.

Official assessment guidance states that a claimant who meets the Special Rules for End of Life criteria should not have a consultation.

Most new claims after State Pension age use another disability benefit

If you are over State Pension age, you cannot usually make a new PIP claim. GOV.UK directs most new claimants in this situation to Attendance Allowance.

There is an exception where you received PIP or Adult Disability Payment in the previous 12 months. Special rules also apply in end-of-life cases and to some existing awards.

Apply to Social Security Scotland if you live in Scotland

If you live in Scotland, you should normally apply for Adult Disability Payment instead of making a new DWP PIP claim. Social Security Scotland accepts applications online or by phone and paper.

Adult Disability Payment has its own application deadlines and evidence procedure, so do not transfer the England and Wales PIP form timetable to a Scottish application.

Claim through the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland

If you live in Northern Ireland, PIP is administered separately by the Department for Communities. The Northern Ireland process starts through the PIP Centre by phone, post or supported sign-language routes.

The benefit has the same 2026 to 2027 weekly PIP rates, but claim contacts and administration are different. Use the Northern Ireland service rather than the DWP England and Wales claim line.

Ask for mandatory reconsideration before appealing

If you disagree with your PIP decision, you can normally ask DWP to reconsider it. This is called mandatory reconsideration and is free.

You normally need to request mandatory reconsideration within 1 month of the date on your decision letter. Explain what you believe is wrong and why, and include relevant evidence.

If you remain dissatisfied after receiving the mandatory reconsideration notice, you can appeal to the independent Social Security and Child Support Tribunal. An appeal normally also has to be made within 1 month of the mandatory reconsideration notice.

Avoid focusing only on your diagnosis

• Do not assume a diagnosis by itself determines entitlement; explain how the condition affects the specific PIP activities.
• Do not describe only your best days. Explain how often your difficulties occur and whether tasks can be done safely, repeatedly, to an acceptable standard and within a reasonable time.
• Do not miss the normal 1-month deadline for the 'How your disability affects you' form; contact DWP if you need more time.
• Send relevant supporting evidence you already have rather than assuming DWP automatically holds every medical record.
• Do not assume savings or employment make you ineligible; PIP is not means tested.
• Do not use the England and Wales DWP route if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland.
• If you disagree with the decision, do not miss the normal 1-month deadline for requesting mandatory reconsideration.