Holiday

Hello there

I am going to Spain for one week in April to pay respects to my late father. Do I need to report this ? Am I permitted holidays on the ESA, non working group.

Thank you so much

Hi there , you are allowed to go on holiday and you do need to report it, just give esa a ring before you go, they will make a note in your file , your not given a form or anything to fill in so if anyone suggests that you need to fill in a form tell them they are incorrect and ask for a manager . They will also ask you to let them know when you’re back , it’s all absolutely fine . if you receive universal credit too leave a note in your journal , you are supposed to let everyone know , irrespective of not being required to work or have work commitments .just to reiterate no one will bother you about it it will be all
Fine , you could go for a couple of weeks if you choose to do so but it’s allowed

That's worth knowing, thank you. Does the same apply when on UC - like many others here, I've received my 'invitation'. I've got to submit my claim by 27th May, but I was planning on going up to my mother's at the beginning of May, to provide some respite for my sister who looks after mum.

Basically, someone drives me up in my WAV so mum and I can go out from time to time, not being restricted to the distance we can travel in our electric wheelchairs/mobility scooters. I stay there for a couple of weeks with mum and we sort of keeping an eye on each other and my sister drives me home, hopefully in the same month.

Given what's going on with the migration, would I be right in thinking I can go up to mum as planned, making sure I'm home in time to submit my claim and being in the support group means I don't need to inform all and sundry that I'm away for a couple of weeks?

This is rather confusing as it states this directly from the government
data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files...oing_Abroad_V8-0.pdf. Going abroad
Contents
New Claim Stage
Temporary absences abroad
Circumstances where the 1-month period can be extended
Holidays
New claim stage
Claimants must be in Great Britain (GB) on the day the Universal Credit claim was
submitted. Claimants who travel abroad or have come back from abroad on the
same day the claim is submitted may be eligible for Universal Credit.
If a claimant is unable to accept a claimant commitment and fails the good reason
test because they are abroad on holiday, they will be required to make a new claim
on their return to GB. This is because they do not have entitlement to Universal
Credit if they are not available to accept their claimant commitment.
Temporary absences abroad
It is a general requirement that a claimant must be in GB to be entitled to Universal
Credit but there are circumstances when a person is still entitled to Universal Credit
whilst temporarily being absent from GB.
Claimants should notify Universal Credit of the intention to go abroad but this may
not always happen especially if they are in the No Work Related Requirement group
or the Working Enough work group. Claimants can go abroad on holiday for any
reason for up to one month, but they must still satisfy their work related requirements
on the claimant commitment.
When the claimant exceeds the period abroad of 1 month, Universal Credit are
notified after the event and the reason for the trip abroad does not fall under the
circumstances when 1 month can be extended, the assessment period in question
must be reduced to nil. This prevents the claimant terminating their claim and having
to make a new one.
There is no limit to the number of periods of up to 1 month allowed abroad each
year. This is to reflect what was allowed within Tax Credits and so is aimed at
working claimants, although this is available to all claimants.
An absence can be extended and in some specific circumstances work-related
requirements may be ‘switched-off’
. If these exceptions do not apply, the claimant
must still satisfy their work-related requirements and meet their claimant
commitment.
Absences of less than one month do not require a referral to a decision maker
unless the claimant has failed to comply with a requirement of the agreed claimant
commitment.
If the claimant is abroad when they make a claim for Universal Credit but return
within the first assessment period, they will be awarded Universal Credit from the
date of declaration. If the claimant fails to provide evidence of the period abroad
when asked, the claim will be closed after 14 days.
If a claimant goes abroad, they are treated as being abroad from the beginning of the
assessment period in which the day after they left the UK falls.
The claim can be closed if there is no engagement or evidence provided by the
claimant.
Although the law states that a claim for Universal Credit must be made from within
GB, due to the design of the Universal Credit system, where a claim has been made
from outside GB, Universal Credit will still be payable where the claimant returns to
GB before the end of the first assessment period.
When a child or qualifying young person goes abroad, see When additional amounts
for a child will not be paid
Circumstances where the 1-month period can be extended
The 1-month extension period can be applied in the following circumstances:
• bereavement
• medical treatment
• a claimant who is a mariner or continental shelf worker
• crown servants or those serving in HM Armed Forces
Bereavement
If a close relative dies abroad and it is unreasonable to expect the claimant to return
to GB within the month, we can consider extending the absence for up to 2 months.
A close relative is a:
• partner
• child or qualifying young person the claimant is responsible for
• a close relative of the claimant, their partner, child or qualifying young person
for whom the claimant or their partner is responsible
If the claimant can provide evidence of the death, their work-related requirements
can be switched-off whilst they are abroad.
For further information, see Switching-off work availability and work-related activities
Medical treatment
If a claimant is receiving medical treatment or is accompanying their partner, child or
a qualifying young person who is receiving such treatment, we can consider
extending the absence for up to 6 months.
If the claimant can provide evidence of this, their work-related requirements can be
switched-off whilst they are abroad.
For further information, see Switching-off work availability and work-related activities
Mariner or continental shelf worker
If a claimant is a mariner or continental shelf worker, we can consider extending the
absence for up to 6 months.
Crown servants or those serving in HM Armed Forces
Crown servants or persons serving in HM Forces who are posted overseas do not
have to meet the basic requirement to be in GB if they are:
• carrying out their overseas duties, and
• were habitually resident in the UK immediately before the first posting (or the
first of consecutive postings)
If a partner accompanies a joint claimant, they also do not need to meet the basic
requirement to be in GB. However, they must still satisfy their work-related
requirements and meet their claimant commitment whilst they are abroad.
Holidays
For Labour Market conditionality purposes, there is no concept of a holiday either at
home or abroad. Being on holiday is not a good reason for not carrying out work
search, work preparation or availability requirements.
A claimant who is on holiday must continue to meet their work-related requirements
as set out in their claimant commitment.
For claimants in the Intensive Work Search regime, they must be prepared to end
their absence abroad (even if currently abroad) to attend a job interview or take up a
job offer.
They will still need to produce evidence of their work search and complete other
activities documented in their claimant commitment.
If a claimant is unable to attend a mandatory appointment such as a Work Search
Review, the work coach can use their discretion to rearrange this if they decide the
claimant is still available for work and able to undertake their work-related Requirement