The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been urged to review Personal Independence Payment (PIP) eligibility for 2,244 claimants who live abroad, a number that has surged by 86% since before the Covid-19 pandemic. The figure, up from 1,203 expats receiving disability assistance pre-pandemic, includes claimants in Spain, Italy, Portugal, and France.
Breakdown of Claimants by Condition
Of the 2,244 claimants, 414 receive support for psychiatric disorders, 1,001 for musculoskeletal conditions, 60 for respiratory illnesses, and 79 for hearing and visual impairments, according to Birmingham Live.
Political Calls for Reform
Former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith told The Sun: "These claims need to be reviewed, and the Government must look at whether it can reform the system. If you choose to live abroad, and work abroad, because PIP is not work-related, you could be earning a significant salary while getting this benefit. This was not as much of a problem as before Covid, but the number of cases have gone up significantly."
DWP Response
A DWP spokesman said: "Only a very small number of PIP claimants are currently living abroad. We're fixing the broken system we inherited by creating a welfare state that works for disabled people and taxpayers and have launched the Timms Review to make sure PIP is fit and fair for the future."
Eligibility Rules for Claimants Abroad
Under DWP regulations, claimants may be entitled to benefits if they are employed in the UK, pay National Insurance contributions in the UK, or have made sufficient NI payments to qualify for contribution-based benefits. Additional qualifying factors include receiving State Pension, Industrial Injuries Benefit, contribution-based ESA, or bereavement benefits, or being covered by the Withdrawal Agreement. There is no requirement to have made a claim in the UK prior to relocating, but claimants must be habitually resident in the EEA country or Switzerland and demonstrate a genuine link with the UK, such as having previously lived or worked there.
