Who can apply and when?

If ALL of the following are relevant to you then you can apply for financial support to assist with funeral costs:

• the person who died lived in the UK
• you live in Scotland
• you or your partner receive certain benefits or tax credits
• the funeral is being held in the UK, EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland
• you are applying after the person has died, until 6 months after the date of their funeral
• you or your partner are responsible for the funeral

You might be able to get a different payment if you live in England or Wales, or Northern Ireland.

To be eligible you must receive at least 1 of the following:

• Universal Credit (UC)
• Child Tax Credit
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Working Tax Credit (disability or severe disability element)
• Housing Benefit
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), not contribution-based JSA
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), not contribution-based ESA

Please note that you can still apply for a Funeral Support Payment if you or your partner are waiting to hear about your benefits application. However, Social Security Scotland can only approve a Funeral Support Payment when they know the outcome of your benefit applications. If you think you may be eligible for any of these benefits, visit the website of GOV.UK.

Being responsible for a funeral

To be responsible for a funeral, you must be both the nearest relation to the person who died and named on the funeral bill. This is usually a partner, child, sibling or parent.

Social Security Scotland can recover your Funeral Support Payment if money becomes available from the person’s estate. They’ll take back either some or all of the payment.

Apply by phone

The call centre opening times are Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.

Make your application by calling Social Security Scotland on 0800 182 2222. An advisor can help you make your application at your own pace. If you’re a British Sign Language user, you can use the contactSCOTLAND app to contact Social Security Scotland by video relay.