Is Attendance Allowance Means-Tested? Guide

Attendance Allowance is not means tested. The DWP awards it based on care needs, not income or savings. But AA covers only a fraction of care costs — and for people with primarily health-driven needs, the NHS funds 100% through Continuing Healthcare, also with no means test. For the full Attendance Allowance application picture — rates, eligibility, the AA1 form, and what to do if refused — see our Attendance Allowance complete guide.

Is attendance allowance means tested?

No — Attendance Allowance is not means tested. And neither is NHS Continuing Healthcare, which covers a completely different funding territory. The DWP awards AA on a single basis: the level of care and supervision your relative needs. Their bank balance, savings, pension, or property value play no part. Full eligibility details are available on the GOV.UK Attendance Allowance page.

The legal authority is the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992. That Act sets out qualifying criteria based entirely on care needs, not financial circumstances. Two people with identical care needs receive identical AA — whether one has £500,000 in savings or nothing at all.

AA pays at two rates for the 2024–25 tax year (DWP, 2024–25):

• Lower rate: £72.65 per week — for people needing help with bodily functions or supervision either during the day or at night.
• Higher rate: £108.55 per week — for people needing help or supervision both during the day and at night, or who are terminally ill.

What the DWP looks at:

• The level and frequency of care needs
• Whether your relative needs help with bodily functions such as washing, dressing, eating, or toileting
• Whether they need supervision to avoid danger
• Whether those needs occur during the day, at night, or both

What the DWP does not look at:

• Income from any source
• Savings or investments
• Property — including the family home
• Pensions or occupational income

However, there is a six-month qualifying period — your relative must have needed care at that level for at least six months before claiming, unless they are terminally ill (Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992).

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What benefits ARE means tested for care costs?

AA is unusual — and there is no fixed list of qualifying conditions, either. Most financial help with care costs does depend on what your relative owns or earns. The table below sets out the key benefits and their means-testing status.

Notably, two of these — AA and NHS Continuing Healthcare — are not means tested at all. But they work in completely different ways, cover very different amounts, and most families are never told about CHC until it is too late. Age UK provides further guidance on navigating care funding options.

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How much does attendance allowance cover compared to actual care costs?

This is where the numbers matter. AA at the higher rate pays £108.55 per week (DWP, 2024–25). The average nursing home in the UK costs around £1,160 per week (Laing Buisson Care of Older People UK Market Report, 2024).

In other words, AA covers roughly 9% of the weekly nursing home bill.

The remaining £1,050 or so comes from one of three places:

1. Your relative's savings and assets — until they fall below £23,250 (Care Act 2014), at which point the local authority begins to contribute. Understanding care home costs is essential for planning this transition.
2. Means-tested local authority funding, if your relative qualifies financially.
3. Family contributions, in some cases.

AA helps. It does not solve the problem. We regularly advise families to treat AA as a bridge to CHC rather than a long-term solution. For many families, it delays the depletion of assets by a few weeks. It does not prevent it.

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For people whose care needs are primarily health-driven — not just frailty or age, but genuine clinical need — NHS Continuing Healthcare fills this gap entirely. It is also not means tested, and it covers 100% of care costs. No savings threshold. No asset assessment. The NHS pays in full.

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NHS Continuing Healthcare vs Attendance Allowance

NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) is NHS-funded care for adults whose primary need is a health need, not a social care need. The NHS pays 100% of care costs — care home fees, nursing, personal care, everything. Your relative keeps their savings. There is no means test of any kind.

Eligibility rests on one test: does your relative have a "primary health need"? The NHS assesses this across 12 clinical domains — including behaviour, cognition, communication, psychological needs, continence, nutrition, skin integrity, mobility, and medication — under the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare (2022).

The practical difference between AA and CHC is significant:

According to NHS England, around 60,000 people in England receive CHC at any one time (NHS Continuing Healthcare Statistics, 2023–24). Many more are eligible but have never been assessed.

Therefore, the overlap is important. Families currently claiming AA with relatives who have:

• Complex dementia with behavioural challenges
• Continence problems requiring clinical management
• Multiple clinical conditions requiring nursing care
• High medication needs
• Unpredictable or deteriorating conditions

...may have a relative with a primary health need that qualifies for CHC. No one from the DWP or the NHS automatically joins these systems up for families. You have to know to ask — and knowing the common pitfalls when claiming AA is the first step.

See our full guide to CHC funding eligibility and assessment.

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Can you receive attendance allowance and NHS Continuing Healthcare at the same time?

No. Once the NHS confirms a CHC award, AA stops. But the net position is overwhelmingly better for your family.

AA at the higher rate pays £108.55 per week (DWP, 2024–25). CHC covers all care costs in full — typically £1,000 to £1,200 per week or more (Laing Buisson Care of Older People UK Market Report, 2024). If CHC applies, your relative pays nothing toward their care, and neither do you.

Meanwhile, during the assessment process — while a CHC claim is under review — AA continues. Your relative keeps receiving AA until the Integrated Care Board formally confirms CHC funding. At that point, AA stops, and CHC takes over entirely.

For instance, the transition period matters. Families sometimes worry about the gap. There is no gap in practice: AA pays up to confirmation, CHC starts from the funding date agreed by the ICB.

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Checking CHC Eligibility While Claiming AA

Accordingly, you do not need a referral from a GP or social worker. You can request a CHC checklist assessment directly.

Here is how:

1. Contact your relative's Integrated Care Board (ICB) — the NHS body that replaced Clinical Commissioning Groups. You can find your local ICB through NHS England's website.
2. Request a CHC checklist assessment in writing. State that your relative has complex health needs and you are asking for a formal checklist to be completed.
3. A registered nurse or social worker completes the checklist. Any registered professional can do this — it is not reserved for specialists.
4. If the checklist is positive, the ICB arranges a full multidisciplinary team (MDT) assessment within 28 days. The MDT reviews all 12 clinical domains under the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare (2022).
5. The MDT produces a Decision Support Tool summarising findings across each domain. A recommendation goes to the ICB, which makes the final funding decision.

From our work with families, we've found that those who go into this process with clinical records, a care diary, and an understanding of the 12 domains are significantly better placed than those who attend without preparation.

For full guidance on what the MDT looks for and how to present evidence effectively, see our CHC funding guide.

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