Heating allowance for OAPs in Spain

Hi,

 

A friend of mine is an OAP, living in Spain and receiving UK old age pension. Can he claim heating allowance in winter?

 

Thanks,

 

Jane

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Hi Jane,

I believe the situation is that to be eligible you must be 60 + and have first claimed the allowance in the UK.  

Cheers

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 You will only get  the WFA in Spain from the UK if you were eligible for it before you moved.

So, if you moved before you were 60, you don't get it.  The level is £200 per household so if one of you was over 60 in the October before you moved, you will receive £200.  If both of you were over 60 then you get £100 each.  

Oh, and you don't need to claim it.  It is given automatically if you have a UK address.

 

This message was last edited by bobaol on 29/11/2011.

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Thanks for that but he doesn´t have a UK address, just a Spanish one, although I am sure he would have been over 60 when he moved here.

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 I think you will find WFA isn´t paid until one qualifies for the State Pension.

At the moment it is still 60 for women and 65 for men and the recipient MUST have been elegible and have already received it whilst still living in the UK. Thereafter you will receive notification in Nov/Dec that it will automatically be paid into your bank account whether that be in UK or in Europe.

Unfortunately it sounds Amatista that this isn´t the case for your friend.

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 If he moved before the WFA was instigated in 1998 then he won't qualify.  Only those living in UK when it was brought in will get it.  He can always contact the international  pensions service on +44 191 218 7777.  The first part of the recorded message gives you details about the WFA.

So, if he moved to Spain after 1998 and he was over 60 when he did move then he will be entitled to it.

 

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thanks all .. he will have to give the Pensions people a call.

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You do not have to be in receipt of retirement pension or over age 65 (men) to receive the WFA, it's dependant on date of birth and residency.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Pensionsandretirementplanning/Benefits/BenefitsInRetirement/DG_198331

The direct.gov.uk websites  are very helpful and user friendly for any queries regarding benefits at home or away.

 

This message was last edited by Poppyseed on 29/11/2011.

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Perfectly correct Poppyseed if  you are under retirement age and on UK benefits however the person in question is an OAP for whom 99% of  UK benefits are not transferable so, rightly or wrongly, according to DWP site the following rules apply

You may get a Winter Fuel Payment for winter 2011/12 if both the following apply:

• you have reached the qualifying age (born on or before 5 January 1951) 
• you normally live in Great Britain or Northern Ireland on any day in the week of 19–25 September 2011

BUT.....

If you move to a European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland

You may only be eligible for a Winter Fuel Payment if you've already qualified for it before you moved to a EEA country or Switzerland. If you move to another country you will not be eligible for a Winter Fuel Payment.

 

So unless Jane´s friend can prove he normally resides in UK during the allotted week or he was in receipt of the WFA before relocating then I don´t think he will get it.

Would love to be wrong though.  Please let us know what happens Jane.

 

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As I said, if age AND residency conditions apply .You do not have to be in receipt of any benefits to qualify for WFA if the age AND residency conditions apply, so someone in full time work can also receive it..

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My father received the fuel allowence when he turned 60. He was still in employment and living in the UK. When he and my mother retired to Spain the fuel allowence continued. When he died my mother who had reached retirement age applied for the fuel allowence but was refused as she is living in Spain.

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I found this graph and I thought this may help people to understand when they would be entitled to WFA if they are resident in UK .
 

The first year (2011) is for those born on or before that date (5/1/51), if you were born after then you will receive WFA the following year 2012.  You must also be resident in UK on 19 - 25 September on the year that you qualify for the payment.

If the original poster has never received WFA then he may have moved abroad before the qualyfying period, check his birthdate against the September cut off period. 

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To go back to the original query, if the person in question was living in the UK they would have been eligible for WFA at the age of 60 (male or female) and they should then have received it automatically. If they subsequently moved to Spain, they would still receive the payment. This happened to John and I as we were both eligible for the payment before we moved here and so continue to receive it. Unfortunately if you are under 60 when moving to Spain, even though you can receive your pension here, you won't be entitled to WFA. As semijubilada has shown, the age is now increasing but the basic rules remain the same.

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The link I posted http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Pensionsandretirementplanning/Benefits/BenefitsInRetirement/DG_198330 includes all the information needed, including late claims for WFA and the new dates for eligibility. It tells you what to do if you have received it before and includes a link to  what to do if you have never received it. I would strongly recommend anyone with any queries regarding benefits at home or away to look at the government websites for definitive answers.

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Hi, You will only get UK heating allowance in Spain if you were recieving it before you left the UK.

Applications from Spain are not accepted.

Regards

Dr. Peter F. Cole.

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 IF YOU HAVE A UK ADDRESS GO BACK AND APPLY FOR IT THEN YOU ARE ALLOWED TO KEEP IT.

YOU HAVE TO BE THERE IN SEPTEMBER SO WILL HAVE TO WAIT TILL THEN

 

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• you qualified for a Winter Fuel Payment when you lived in the UK 
• you then moved to another European Economic Area (EEA) country or to Switzerland

• you did not qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment before leaving the UK 
• you permanently left the UK before 5 January 1998 
• you normally live outside the EEA or Switzerland 
• you normally live in the UK (but you can still receive payments as a UK resident) 
• you are in custody under sentence during the qualifying week (19 to 25 September 2011)

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 READ THE DWP WEB SITE IT IS ALL THERE

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Agree strongly with johnzx - there are too many sucking money from the UK when the country seems to need as much as possible.

We tried to stop our WFA found it impossible and so gave it to Age UK so they could help people who needed it.

 

David

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 MAYBE BUT THE LAW IS THE LAW NO MATTER HOW ODD

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