Funeral Support Payment

Funeral Support Payment helps pay for funeral costs if you live in Scotland. You can use the payment towards funeral costs for a baby, child or adult. This includes babies who were stillborn.

It usually will not cover the full cost of the funeral but it should help pay for some costs. It can be paid either to you or the funeral director who's helping you plan the funeral.

Only one person can get Funeral Support Payment for the funeral.

You will not be eligible if you've already had other government support for the funeral, this includes:

• Funeral Expenses Payment (England or Wales)
• Funeral Payment (Northern Ireland)
• your hospital arranging and paying for your baby's funeral if you had a stillbirth and you did not have to pay any other costs

You can get a Funeral Support Payment if all of the following apply:

• you live in Scotland
• you or your partner are getting certain benefits or tax credits
• the person who died lived in the UK
• the funeral is being held in the UK or in some circumstances in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland
• you are applying after the person has died, until 6 months after the date of their funeral
• you or your partner are responsible for the funeral
• it is reasonable for you or your partner to accept responsibility for the funeral costs

Usually, it is reasonable for the nearest relative of the person who died to accept responsibility for the funeral costs. A nearest relative could be a partner, child, parent or sibling. If you or your partner are not the nearest relative, you'll need to explain to us when you apply, why it's reasonable to have accepted responsibility. You can use the 'If you think there is something else we need to know' box at the end of the form to provide this information. We will call you to discuss this.

If you could not apply for the Funeral Support Payment within 6 months of the funeral taking place due to the disruption caused by coronavirus (COVID-19), we'll accept your application as on time. If you've received a backdated benefit you may also have longer to apply. Call Social Security Scotland on 0800 182 2222 for more information.