The Disability Assistance (Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance) Regulations 2025: fairer Scotland duty assessment

1. Summary of aims and expected outcomes of strategy, proposal, programme or policy

The Scotland Act 2016 devolved some social security powers to the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament for the first time. The Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 (the 2018 Act) sets out the broad framework for the delivery of the Scottish Government’s social security benefits^[1] and in 2018 Social Security Scotland was set up in to deliver devolved benefits on behalf of Scottish Ministers. The programme of devolution is expected to be completed by 2025/26. A major element of this programme is the transfer of the awards of around 700,000 children and adults in receipt of disability and carer benefits from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to Social Security Scotland.

On 1 April 2020, executive and legal competence for disability benefits, including Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment and Attendance Allowance was transferred to Scottish Ministers. The Scottish Government has now replaced Disability Living Allowance for children with Child Disability Payment, and Personal Independence Payment with Adult Disability Payment, and intends to replace Attendance Allowance with Pension Age Disability Payment from 2025. All children and young people in Scotland that were receiving Disability Living Allowance have had their awards transferred to Child Disability Payment and the process for transferring people’s Personal Independence Payment awards to Adult Disability Payment is ongoing.

Recognising that the disability benefits being transferred are critical for some of the most vulnerable people in our society, Scottish Ministers have set out a number of case transfer principles which have been used to guide the development of the approach to case transfer. These principles have been enveloped through engagement with existing benefit recipients and stakeholder organisations. Learning lessons from previous benefit transfers within the Department for Work and Pensions. The principles are:

• Correct payment at the correct time – ensuring that the case transfer process is designed so that clients will receive the same amount for the Scottish benefit as they received for the corresponding UK benefit. A safe and secure transfer is the priority.
• No re-applications - we will not require clients to apply for their new benefit as part of the case transfer. We will work with Department for Work and Pensions to move clients automatically to Social Security Scotland and the corresponding new Scottish benefit.
• No face to face Department for Work and Pensions re-assessments - we will, wherever possible, ensure that no-one will be subject to a face to face re-assessment by Department for Work and Pensions when new applications for Adult Disability Payment are open across Scotland.
• Complete as soon as possible – Scottish Ministers have been clear that they want to complete the transfer of cases as soon as is possible in a way that will be safe and secure, and not create unacceptable risks for clients.
• Clear communication with clients – we will inform our clients the date their case will be transferred and will keep them informed at the various stages of the case transfer process.

A key to delivering on this principles is to ensure like-for-like transfer. This means that new forms of disability assistance in Scotland introduced under the Social Security Scotland Act 2018 have been designed to have the same main eligibility criteria and financial values as the UK wide benefits they are replacing. This means clients’ awards can be transferred without clients having to re-apply, be re-assessed or see any change in their rate of award. These principles were developed through engagement with

Disability Living Allowance for adults was replaced by Personal Independence Payment in 2013, and only a small group of people remain on Disability Living Allowance. Adult Disability Payment has now replaced Personal Independence Payment in Scotland and is the primary disability benefit available for working age adults in Scotland. Disability Living Allowance continues to be delivered in Scotland by the Department for Work and Pensions on behalf of the Scottish Government under an Agency Agreement. There are two distinct groups of people remaining on this benefit:

• Disability Living Allowance ‘65+’

People who were over the age of 65 when Personal Independence Payment was introduced in 2013 (i.e. born on or before 8 April 1948) received a commitment from the Department for Work and Pensions that they could continue to receive Disability Living Allowance for as long as they are eligible to do so. These individuals have never been in scope for transfer to Personal Independence Payment or Adult Disability Payment, and have continued to have any change in their circumstances managed by the Department for Work and Pensions under the Disability Living Allowance rules.

• ‘Working Age’ Disability Living Allowance

This group consists of those in receipt of Disability Living Allowance who were born after 8 April 1948 and have not yet transferred either to Personal Independence Payment (before 1 April 2020) or to Adult Disability Payment. This cohort are understood to have long-standing, persistent needs – the fact that they remain on Disability Living Allowance suggests that they have not reported a significant change in their circumstances since 2013. Until Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance is introduced, individuals in this group who report a relevant change of circumstances will continue to transfer to Adult Disability Payment.

Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance will be delivered by Social Security Scotland on behalf of Scottish Ministers. Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance will, like Disability Living Allowance for adults, be a closed benefit meaning that there will be no new applications. It is being introduced to facilitate a safe and secure transfer of awards from the Department for Work and Pensions to Social Security Scotland, while continuing to meet commitments given by the Department for Work and Pensions that those the 65+ group could remain on Disability Living Allowance for as long as they remained entitled. The introduction of Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance also provides the opportunity to provide a like-for-like transfer for those in the ‘Working Age’ group.

The Disability Assistance (Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance) Regulations 2025 set out the eligibility criteria and how Social Security Scotland will deliver Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance. Section 31 of the 2018 Act sets out the legal basis in which Scottish Ministers make regulations for the rules and structures of disability assistance. The regulations also make provision for the case transfer process for adults in Scotland who currently receive Disability Living Allowance. The regulations also make provision for people to challenge a determination by requesting a re-determination, and subsequently they will be able to appeal to the Social Security Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland.

As part of the commitment to a safe and secure transfer, Scottish Ministers do not propose to make significant changes to the existing Disability Living Allowance eligibility criteria when introducing Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance. Examples of this include the replication of the current 3-month qualifying period for Disability Living Allowance for those under the relevant age and capping the rate of the mobility component for clients over that age. By maintaining the current eligibility criteria, individuals in Scotland who are eligible for passported benefits and premiums from the UK Government will have seamless access to this vital support. This will provide security to people in Scotland when Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance is rolled out.

However, there are some key changes along with a number of practical administrative differences between Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance and Disability Living Allowance from developing the new benefit within the framework of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 which Scottish Ministers expect to have a positive impact for disabled people in Scotland. The improvements introduced in the Social Security Scotland delivered disability benefits have been developed through the commitments under the Social Security Charter.^[2] The Scottish Government recognises social security as a human right and has designed Social Security Scotland’s services with the people who use them so that everyone is treated with dignity, fairness and respect. The Scottish Government is committed to continually improving Scottish disability benefits by continuing to engage with disabled people and stakeholders to identify areas for further improvement in future.

This policy is closely aligned with the Healthier, Wealthier and Fairer Strategic Objectives, and contributes to the following National Outcomes:

• We respect, protect and fulfil human rights and live free from discrimination;
• We tackle poverty by sharing opportunities, wealth, and power more equally; and
• We live in communities that are inclusive, empowered, resilient and safe.