Disability Living Allowance for adults
Disability Living Allowance for adults has been replaced by the benefit Personal Independence Payment.
What is Disabled Living Allowance (DLA) for adults?
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, Personal Independence Payment (PIP) has replaced an older benefit called Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for adults.
You cannot apply for DLA for adults now. If you have not reached State Pension age and are making a new claim, you must apply for PIP instead.
If you live in England or Wales
If you live in England or Wales and already get DLA for adults, the following will happen:
- If you were born before 9 April 1948, you will not be asked to move to PIP.
- If you were born after 9 April 1948, the DWP will write to you to tell you when your DLA will end. They will invite you to apply for PIP. You must apply within 4 weeks from the date on the letter.
- If you are getting DLA and tell the DWP that your circumstances have changed, you will have to apply for PIP. PIP will replace your DLA, even if it means you will get a lower amount.
If you live in Scotland
If you live in Scotland, Adult Disability Payment has replaced Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for adults under State Pension age.
If you live in Northern Ireland
If you live in Northern Ireland and already get DLA for adults, the following will happen:
- If you were born before 20 June 1951, you will not be asked to move to PIP.
- If you are already getting DLA and are over State Pension age with a lifetime award, your DLA will continue. You will not be reassessed for PIP.
- If the above do not apply, the DfC will write to you to tell you when your DLA will end. They will invite you to apply for PIP. You must apply within 4 weeks from the date on the letter. If you move from DLA to PIP but get less money, you may be able to get extra payments. This is called a supplementary payment. You can find out more about this at nidirect.gov.uk.
About our information
This information has been written, revised and edited by Macmillan Cancer Support’s Cancer Information Development team. It has been reviewed by expert medical and health professionals and people living with cancer.
-
References
Below is a sample of the sources used in our benefits information. If you would like more information about the sources we use, please contact us at informationproductionteam@macmillan.org.uk
GOV.UK www.gov.uk [accessed May 2025].
NI Direct www.nidirect.gov.uk [accessed May 2025].
Social Security Scotland www.socialsecurity.gov.scot [accessed May 2025].
Macmillan Welfare Rights Team
Reviewer
Date reviewed
Our cancer information meets the PIF TICK quality mark.
This means it is easy to use, up-to-date and based on the latest evidence. Learn more about how we produce our information.
The language we use
We want everyone affected by cancer to feel our information is written for them.
We want our information to be as clear as possible. To do this, we try to:
- use plain English
- explain medical words
- use short sentences
- use illustrations to explain text
- structure the information clearly
- make sure important points are clear.
We use gender-inclusive language and talk to our readers as ‘you’ so that everyone feels included. Where clinically necessary we use the terms ‘men’ and ‘women’ or ‘male’ and ‘female’. For example, we do so when talking about parts of the body or mentioning statistics or research about who is affected.
You can read more about how we produce our information here.