PIP: How much will I get and for how long?

How much personal independence payment (PIP) you’ll get and for how long depends on your individual situation and how likely it is your condition will change.

In this guide, we look at how the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) make these decisions so you can work out much you’re likely to get and for how long.

How much PIP will I get?

There are two parts to PIP:

money to help with everyday tasks – this is known as the daily living part
money to help you get around – this is known as the mobility part

There are also two PIP rates: the lower weekly rate and the higher weekly rate.

Which one you get will depend on how much you struggle to:

carry out everyday tasks
get about

The current rates are:

	Lower weekly rate	Higher weekly rate
Daily living part	£72.65	£108.55
Mobility part	£28.70	£75.75

How long does it take to get PIP?

The PIP claims process is a long one. It’s not unusual for it to take six months between starting your claim and getting your first payment.

If your claim is successful, your payments will be backdated to the date you started your claim.

How often is PIP paid?

PIP is paid every four weeks, unless you have a terminal illness and then it’s paid every week.

How long will I get PIP for?

The DWP will decide how long you can get PIP for.

They might give you an indefinite award – this means there is no end date. These cases tend to be reviewed every ten years.

If you’re terminally ill, you’ll get awarded PIP for three years.

For all other cases, you’ll get PIP for a fixed amount of time. Your decision letter will tell you how long.

If you’re awarded PIP for more than two years, DWP will probably review it before it ends to see if it should be renewed.

They probably won’t review your award and your payments will stop if:

you’re awarded PIP for two years or less; or
you challenged their decision and a tribunal awarded you PIP or increased the amount of your payments

illustration of woman with watering can watering brain

FAQs

If your PIP claim is successful, your payments will be backdated to the day you started your application. You can’t backdate PIP any further than this.

If you get PIP before you reach state pension age, you’ll continue to receive it afterwards too.

But if you develop care needs after reaching state pension age, you’ll need to claim attendance allowance instead.