The Department for Work and Pensions has opened a six-week call for evidence on the future of Carer’s Allowance, starting on 7 July 2026 and closing on 18 August 2026. The department presents this as the first major review of the benefit since it was introduced in 1976, with evidence intended to inform later reform rather than deliver immediate rule changes. (gov.uk) The exercise is aimed at unpaid carers, people with care needs, carers’ organisations and others with relevant experience. According to the GOV.UK notice, responses can be submitted through GOV.UK, accessible versions are available, and the process will also include targeted stakeholder engagement. (gov.uk)
Current rules help explain why the review matters. Carer’s Allowance in England and Wales is worth £86.45 a week and is generally payable where a person provides at least 35 hours of care to someone receiving a qualifying disability benefit. Under the present rules, only one carer can claim for the same cared-for person. (gov.uk) The earnings limit has already been lifted to £204 a week, which the department describes as a record level and which equates to just over £10,600 across a full year if earnings were constant. Scotland now runs Carer Support Payment instead of Carer’s Allowance, while Northern Ireland keeps parity arrangements with DWP even though social security is transferred. (gov.uk)
The immediate reason for the review is the Sayce examination of overpayments. DWP and the review both say earlier guidance on averaging fluctuating earnings was unclear, leaving some carers unsure what had to be reported and allowing debts to build up over time without a clear understanding that the weekly limit had been breached. (gov.uk) The review also returned to the long-standing 'cliff edge' in the allowance. In simple terms, once earnings go above the weekly limit, the whole award is lost rather than reducing gradually. The government said in November 2025 that it accepted 38 of the review’s 40 recommendations and would pursue longer-term reform alongside administrative fixes. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
That earlier response has already led to a reassessment exercise. DWP says it is reviewing Carer’s Allowance overpayments that arose between 10 April 2015 and 2 September 2025, and the 7 July 2026 press notice says roughly 200,000 cases are in scope, with around 25,000 expected to lead to debts being reduced, cancelled or refunded. (gov.uk) The same press notice says capital disregard regulations due after 7 July 2026 will ensure those refunds do not affect entitlement to Universal Credit, Pension Credit or Housing Benefit. For affected households, the stated aim is to prevent a refund from altering means-tested benefit entitlement. (gov.uk)
The new call for evidence goes beyond the reassessment exercise. DWP says it wants views on modernising the earnings rules to reduce the current cliff edge, improving predictability for carers with varying incomes, and better supporting people who combine paid work with caring. The press notice also says ministers are considering whether an earnings taper should replace the abrupt cut-off and whether rules that limit the amount of work a carer can do should be revised. (gov.uk) For officials, advisers and carers’ organisations, the important point is that the consultation is about design choices rather than only past errors. An earnings taper would mean support falls away gradually instead of stopping at once; changes to work-related rules could also affect how carers manage uneven earning patterns, including short periods of higher pay that the Sayce review identified as a source of difficulty under the current scheme. (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
External organisations quoted by DWP have broadly welcomed the review. Carers UK said the present structure is outdated and especially difficult for carers with fluctuating earnings, while Carers Trust said reform has been overdue given the way work and caring have changed since 1976. (gov.uk) The territorial position also matters. The consultation applies to a benefit available in England and Wales, but DWP is seeking views from across the UK; Scotland’s separate Carer Support Payment and Northern Ireland’s parity arrangements mean responses may still be useful when officials assess how far later reform should reflect different devolved systems. The next formal milestone is the 18 August 2026 deadline for submissions. (gov.uk)