Funeral Industry News

Social Security Scotland Update

April 28, 2020 by funeral-industry-news No Comments | Category COVID-19, Funeral directors, Funeral services

Social Security Scotland has outlined below what it is doing to try and ease the pressure for funeral directors during the coronavirus pandemic.

Relaxing eligibility timescales

Funeral Support Payment continues to only be available to people in Scotland, who are on certain benefits or tax credits, who had the nearest relationship to the deceased, and are paying for a funeral.

Normally, applications can only be made up to six months following a funeral. This rule has been relaxed. Clients can now apply late, if the reason for the delay in applying for support is due to COVID-19.

Online evidence upload

It is now possible for Funeral Support Payment applicants to submit evidence online. If a client is applying online, they will receive a message guiding them to a new portal to upload their documents.

If they have been asked to upload evidence to support an existing application, they can do this from the evidence upload web page, which can be found here.

Processing timescales

Despite these challenging times, Social Security Scotland still fully expect to meet their normal processing timescales.

A client should receive a decision within 10 working days of the service receiving a completed application form, which includes all supporting evidence that is required.

Your support

Social Security Scotland is asking for your support in encouraging people to check if they are eligible for the Funeral Support Payment and apply online at https://www.mygov.scot/funeral-support-payment/

Feedback

Social Security Scotland would like to know if there is anything they can do to help improve the application experience.  You can email a suggestion to communications@socialsecurity.gov.scot.

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