Winter Heating Assistance (Pension Age) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025: Policy Note

Determinations Without Application

The expansion of eligibility to PAWHP introduces a greater range of conditions determining payment value, therefore increasing the likelihood of underpayment and overpayment in one specific scenario relating to an award of a relevant benefit received after the qualifying week, which is backdated to the qualifying week. Provision has therefore been made to allow for new Determinations Without Applications to correct changes to entitlement resulting from backdated awards. Specifically, this provision will cover the scenario in which an individual lives with another eligible individual and is not living with them as a member of a couple or member of a polygamous marriage (e.g. two sisters of state pension age, or a mother and son both of state pension age), and is not in receipt of relevant benefits, and therefore receives a shared rate of PAWHP, but retrospectively becomes eligible to a higher rate of payment through entitlement to a relevant benefit which is backdated to the qualifying week. In this scenario, a new determination without application will be made. They will then be entitled to one of two higher amounts depending on their age, which will be offset under regulation 16A (calculation of payments) against any lower payment previously received for the same qualifying week, allowing for a top-up payment to be issued.