# DLA - disability living allowance in Spain



## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

okay people – I'm hoping that I can solve an ongoing worry here…

I have been considering moving my mother to Spain for a number of years. Like so many elderly people in the UK she had to sell her home to pay for care and now is completely reliant on her state income in the UK to survive. In the UK she obviously is entitled to her old age pension, she gets disability living allowance – both the mobility and the care element, she gets housing benefit and also contributions towards her care.

She is also in receipt of a small amount of state pension credit – about £25 per week.

I know that if she moves to Spain she will lose the pension credit and she will lose one element of her disability allowance. I know that she will keep her basic state pension but where I'm having difficulties is with the other element of the disability – the care element. I have been told by the DWP that each case is assessed on its individual merits. She is in receipt of a full state pension – in fact she gets slightly more than the basic minimal level which confuses me because she never used to because she was always a housewife however I believe that her pension increased when my father died because she inherited some of his rights. Nevertheless she also gets pension credit.

Whether or not she can afford to move to Spain would depend entirely on whether or not her disability living allowance is payable. I know that the mobility element would stop but I am not able to get a definitive answer on the care element will stop information on the Internet seems to vary from source to source and the DWP website says that she may be able to claim depending on her circumstances. I have been in contact with their exportability team on numerous occasions but they are unable to give me a definitive answer. They tell me that each case is looked at on a case-by-case basis and they cannot give me an answer until she applies but she cannot apply until she has moved to the foreign country.

Now I'm sure you are understanding my predicament here. Should I move her and then find that she is not entitled to claim this benefit she would be in a situation of not being able to afford to live in Spain. Likewise, moving her back after going through the upheaval of moving her here would not be a realistic option. The DWP are not able to give me a definitive answer in advance so the whole situation is extremely difficult because I cannot move her until I know for sure but I do not seem to get a definite answer until she has moved.

Does anybody here have any advice or any experience in this area and are they able to give me any pointers? I have tried writing and emailing the exportability department at the DWP but they do not respond, they are also not contactable by telephone. The only response that I have had from them to date is that they are unable to give me an answer until she has moved – which is splendid to say the least!

Thank you in advance my bunch of fellow foreigner friends


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

steve_in_spain said:


> okay people – I'm hoping that I can solve an ongoing worry here…
> 
> I have been considering moving my mother to Spain for a number of years. Like so many elderly people in the UK she had to sell her home to pay for care and now is completely reliant on her state income in the UK to survive. In the UK she obviously is entitled to her old age pension, she gets disability living allowance – both the mobility and the care element, she gets housing benefit and also contributions towards her care.
> 
> ...


yes, a predicament - but if they can't give you a definitive answer then no-one can

when we moved my dad over to be with us, we just did it - what benefits he might or might not keep/lose didn't come into the equation - we didn't even think about it

he couldn't look after himself properly any more - so we looked after him


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> yes, a predicament - but if they can't give you a definitive answer then no-one can
> 
> when we moved my dad over to be with us, we just did it - what benefits he might or might not keep/lose didn't come into the equation - we didn't even think about it
> 
> he couldn't look after himself properly any more - so we looked after him


 unfortunately – well, of course fortunately I guess – my mum is not in a situation where she is totally unable to care for herself. She lives in a complex in the UK where everything is under one roof – shop, restaurant, hairdresser etc and although she is confined to a wheelchair when she goes out she is able to get around a little. She has a carer that visits her twice a day is to assist with things like showering her etc.

Therefore, with this in mind and also the fact that there is absolutely no way with my working schedule and my three big dogs that she could live here she also would like her independence. So, the plan – all things being permitted is for her to get a small apartment nearby and have a carer going for one hour each day. Obviously, this is where the predicament comes in because financing it would be very possible if she gets what I think she's entitled to a very impossible if she doesn't


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Have you contacted the DWP in Spain??? They post on here occasionally - I'll see if I can dig up their profile name.....

Jo xxx


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

jojo said:


> Have you contacted the DWP in Spain??? They post on here occasionally - I'll see if I can dig up their profile name.....
> 
> Jo xxx


Expat Forum For People Moving Overseas And Living Abroad - View Profile: DWPinSpain You never know.........???

Jo xxx


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

jojo said:


> Expat Forum For People Moving Overseas And Living Abroad - View Profile: DWPinSpain You never know.........???
> 
> Jo xxx


thanks Jo - I will get in touch - you are a star!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Expat Forum For People Moving Overseas And Living Abroad - View Profile: UKinSpain This one is the same people, different district of Spain I think??????????????

Jo xxx


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

steve_in_spain said:


> thanks Jo - I will get in touch - you are a star!


 what is the world coming to

The British Consulate in Alicante has two telephone numbers – one of those 902 numbers which costs a fortune to call on a mobile and also an alternative landline number. apparently according to both my mobile phone operator and Skype the alternative number is no longer in existence despite it being displayed on their website. I therefore decided due to the importance of the nature of my enquiry to invest the money in calling the 902 number and after listening to around about 20 different menu options I finally found that none of them matched my particular enquiry so I took the option to speak to the adviser.

The adviser explained that the DWP representative is no longer in Spain and that they only have a healthcare team now grrrrrr so back to the drawing board LOL


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