Disadvantage in getting a job

Your award of Working Tax Credit could be increased if you or your partner is entitled to the disability element.  Being at a disadvantage in getting a job is one of the conditions for qualifying for the disability element.

You count as being at a disadvantage in getting a job if one of the following is true:

• You have to hold onto something to keep your balance standing up.
• You cannot walk 100 metres on level ground without stopping; even with the walking aids you normally use (e.g. walking stick, frame, crutches)
• Walking 100 metres on level ground causes you severe pain, even with the walking aids you normally use.
• You cannot use either hand behind your back to put on a jacket or tuck in your shirt.
• It is difficult for you to hold either of your arms in front of you to shake hands with someone. 
• It is difficult for you to put your hand up to your head to put on a hat.
• You cannot use one hand pick up a coin that is less than 2.5 centimetres across (for example: a ten pence piece).
• It is difficult for you to use your hands or arms to pick up a full 1 litre jug and pour from it into a cup.
• You cannot turn either of your hands sideways through 180 degrees (so the palm faces the opposite direction).
• You have been certified as severely sight impaired or blind by a consultant ophthalmologist.
• You cannot see to read 16 point print that is 20 centimetres away, even when you are wearing the glasses you normally use.
• You cannot hear a telephone ring when you are in the same room as the telephone, even if you are using the hearing aid that you normally use.
• It is difficult for you to hear what someone is saying in a loud voice, when they are 2 metres away in a quiet room, even if you are using the hearing aid that you normally use.
• It is difficult for people who know you to understand what you say.
• It is difficult for you to understand what someone says to you, even when you know that person well.
• You are in a coma or lose consciousness in a fit during the daytime at least once a year.
• You have a mental illness and you regularly receive treatment under the supervision of a medically qualified person, for example: you regularly attend sessions with a psychiatrist or a Community Psychiatric Nurse (CPN).
• You are often confused or forgetful because you have a mental disability.
• You cannot do simple maths (adding and taking away).
• Your mental disability means you sometimes hit people or damage property.
• Your mental disability means you find it very difficult to make friends.
• You cannot normally work for 8 hours a day because of your medical condition or severe pain.
• You cannot normally work for five days per week because of your medical condition or severe pain. 
• As a result of an illness or accident you are undergoing a period of habilitation or rehabilitation.