https://www.slab.org.uk/guidance/eligibility-on-income/
https://www.slab.org.uk/guidance/eligibility-on-income/
This page covers how you should go about verifying that your client is eligible to receive children’s A&A or ABWOR based on the income they receive. It covers the kind of evidence you should see from employed clients; self-employed clients; and clients in receipt of benefits. It also sets out what you should do in cases where your client declared they have no source of income.
Income is likely to come from one of three sources:
If your client declares no income it is important that you ask them to explain on the file and to us how they support themselves.
You can get good information about income and outgoings from bank statements so you should always ask your client to bring these. Most benefits and wages are paid into bank accounts.
If your client uses online banking, you should view the statements online or on an app but we accept that there may be no paper copy for you to retain. If this is the type of verification you have used, you should note this on the application.
If your client claims to have no bank account you should decide if this is likely and record on what basis you accepted the position. You may be satisfied from the information on a bank statement that your client is eligible but we list below evidence you may wish to see as an alternative to or in addition to a bank statement.
The latest wage slip is the best evidence. You may also be satisfied in seeing:
Your client may have more than one type of income or capital. You should get verification of each type.
It is also possible to accept a bank statement showing the net pay received. Some employees may have other significant deductions made at source. It is important that you check with your client that there are no significant deductions from pay other than those allowed by regulation. When there are such deductions you should obtain additional documentary evidence such as the payslips.
The following are helpful in evidencing income:
In the absence of these, the onus is on your client to satisfy you about their income. You must always document on file how you have satisfied yourself that such a client is eligible.
Benefits are paid directly into bank or post office accounts so bank statements are a good source of information and verification. If your client uses online banking, you should view the statements online or on an app but we accept that there may be no paper copy for you to retain. If this is the type of verification you have used, you should note this on the application.
Alternatively, you could ask for the most recent award letter or other correspondence from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
When your client declares no income you should still take steps to verify this. You should ask to see a bank statement in all cases to confirm there is no income or capital. If your client claims to have no such account and you are satisfied on this you should record the reasons why.
If your client is a young person and claims to be living with their parents you may either ask for confirmation of that from the parents or judge by your client’s age and circumstances whether this is likely to be true. For older clients you should ask and record, how they support themselves without any income, decide whether this is credible and record the basis for your decision.
We have a direct link with the Department for Work and Pensions that allows us to check cases where your client is receiving passport benefits.
These benefits are:
Where your client tells you they receive one of these benefits, we can confirm this and tell you promptly of any information to the contrary in the DWP records. For this, you must provide your client’s national insurance number and date of birth on the application. You must also provide this information in respect of any spouse or partner to whom the benefit is paid.
If we cannot confirm through the link that your client is receiving the benefit we will treat the application as though you had not yet verified your client’s income. We will then contact you and your client for further information.
Verification of financial eligibility for children’s advice and assistance and ABWOR
Read about why you should verify your client’s capital, even if they receive a passported benefit, as well as the types of documentary evidence required.
Verification of financial eligibility for children’s advice and assistance and ABWOR
Find out what you can do in cases where documentary evidence of financial eligibility is not immediately available, including a number of examples.