UK Bereavement Support Payment Calculator

What the bereavement support payment calculator does

The calculator sets out what you would receive after a partner dies: the first payment, each monthly instalment, how many instalments are still due and the total across the whole claim. It also puts a number on the cost of claiming late, which the official guidance leaves you to work out yourself.

Bereavement Support Payment replaced the older bereavement allowances and works differently. It is a fixed, time-limited package: a larger payment at the start, then equal monthly instalments for a set term, then nothing. Knowing that shape helps you plan the year after a death instead of being surprised when the payments stop.

The two rates

The higher rate applies if you have dependent children or were pregnant when your partner died. The standard rate applies to everyone else who qualifies. The gap is large because the higher rate is meant to help with raising children on one income: at current rates, £3,500 followed by 18 monthly payments of £350, against £2,500 followed by 18 payments of £100.

Tick the box in the calculator if children are involved and the figures switch to the higher rate. Both rate sets and the length of the payment term are parameters, so the tool follows the rules in force.

Why the timing of the claim matters

The calculator asks how many months have passed since the death because two separate deadlines work against a late claim.

The monthly instalments run for a fixed term that starts from the death, not from your claim. They can be backdated by a limited number of months. Claim within that window and you receive the full run of instalments. Claim later and every month beyond the window is lost. The term does not extend to make up for it, so a delay removes payments from the front without pushing the end date back.

The first payment has its own, longer deadline. Claim inside it and you receive the payment in full; claim outside it and you lose all of it, even if some monthly instalments are still payable. A claim made well over a year after a death can therefore be worth a fraction of the full package.

For example, on the higher rate a claim made straight away is worth £3,500 plus 18 × £350, £9,800 in total. With the default three months of backdating, a claim six months after the death loses three instalments, £1,050. The calculator shows the lost instalments and the money they represent as separate lines.

Who qualifies

You must have been under State Pension age when your partner died, and your partner must have paid enough National Insurance, or have died because of an accident at work or a disease caused by work. The calculator has a tick box for the age condition, and unticking it returns nothing, because that condition has no exceptions.

The payment now reaches more people than the benefits it replaced. Surviving cohabiting partners with children are covered alongside married couples and civil partners, and some people who were previously excluded can make backdated claims. The rules on qualifying partnerships are detailed, so use the calculator as a guide to the amounts and check eligibility against the official guidance.

What it does not affect

The payment is not means-tested, so your income, savings and whether you work make no difference to the amount. It is not taxable either, so the figures shown are what you would receive.

It is also disregarded for a period when most other benefits are worked out, so claiming it does not immediately cut Universal Credit or Housing Benefit. That protection is time-limited, and money still in your account after it ends can count as capital, so plan how you will use it.

What you need to enter

• Whether there are dependent children, which sets the rate.
• How many months have passed since the death.
• Confirmation that you were under State Pension age at the date of death.

The advanced options let you set the backdating allowance and the deadline for the first payment. They default to three and twelve months; change them only if the guidance for your circumstances differs.

Reading your result

The main figure is the total you would receive. Below it are the first payment, the monthly instalment, how many instalments remain, their combined value, the instalments lost to a late claim, the money they represent and the maximum you would have received by claiming immediately.

Compare the total with the maximum. If they match, you are claiming in time. If they do not, the gap is the cost of the delay, and if you have not claimed yet, it is a reason to claim today rather than next month.

The result is an estimate based on the figures you enter and is not benefits or financial advice. Entitlement depends on your late partner’s National Insurance record and the circumstances of the death, and only the Department for Work and Pensions can confirm what is payable. Speak to an adviser or check the official guidance before relying on these figures.

About This Tool: Bereavement Support Payment

Bereavement support payment: use this tool to get an instant, accurate estimate. The figures follow official GOV.UK guidance and every rate and threshold is kept up to date for 2026. Adjust the inputs above to match your situation, or browse all our calculators to plan your next step.