BUDGETING LOANS AND EXCEPTIONAL NEEDS GRANTS

Budgeting Loans | What can I get a Budgeting Loan for? | Savings | Savings

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Budgeting Loans

A Budgeting Loan is an interest-free loan to help you and your family spread the cost of items other than regular expenses. If you or your partner have been getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance for at least 4 weeks you may be eligible for a loan. Budgeting Loans have to be paid back to the Department.

What can I get a Budgeting Loan for?

Please download the excerpt from the Benefits and Contributions Information Guide below for information on what you may be able to receive a Budgeting Loan for.

The maximum amount of a Budgeting Loan you can have depends on your circumstances and whether you have any other loans that still have to be paid back. The maximum amount of any Budgeting Loan you may get is £1,000, but it may be less if you still have a loan outstanding.

Savings

If you and your partner have savings of more than £1,000 it will affect the amount of Budgeting Loan you can get.

You cannot get a Budgeting Loan if you already owe £500 or more of a previous loan.

You cannot get a Budgeting Loan for expenses of less than £30 unless you are claiming for lost cash.

How we decide what we can pay you

An adjudication officer will look at your circumstances and decide the maximum amount of Budgeting Loan you can have, taking into account any loan you still owe us.

How you pay back a loan

We will look at what you can afford before we decide how much you will have to pay back. If we can pay you a Budgeting Loan, we will make you an offer. It will be up to you to decide if you can afford to pay it back.

We may not be able to lower the repayment rate if you later feel you cannot afford the rate you originally agreed to.
We will ask you to agree the amount that you have to pay back.
We will take money back direct from your benefit.
If you do not get any benefit, we will require the loan to be repaid in another way.

If you have any problems later on making the repayments as originally agreed, we may be able to help, for example reducing your payments by extending the repayment period.

Exceptional Needs Grants

Unlike Budgeting Loans, Exceptional Needs Grants do not have to be paid back.

Please download the excerpt from the Benefits and Contributions Information Guide below for information on what you may be able to recive an Exceptional Needs Grant for.

There are maximum amounts payable for certain items or services claimed with an overall maximum of £1,000.

To make a decision, the adjudication officer will look at whether or not there is a genuine and reasonable need for the item in question.

Savings

If you and you partner have savings of more than £1,000 it will affect the amount of Exceptional Needs Grant you can get.

How we decide what we can pay you

An adjudication officer will look at your circumstances and decide the maximum amount of Exceptional Needs Grant you can have.

How and when to claim

Find out the cost of the items you want to claim for, then complete the claim form BLG(IOM) and return it to us as soon as you can. You could lose money if you delay claiming.

For further information on Budgeting Loans and Exceptional Needs Grants, please download the documents below -

Downloadable Documents