Everything about calling Disability Living Allowance helpline from abroad
Who the DLA helpline is for
New claims for Disability Living Allowance are only for children under 16 living in England or Wales. Anyone over 16 applies for Personal Independence Payment instead, or Attendance Allowance at State Pension age. If your child currently lives in England or Wales, you can claim for them by printing the form or by calling 0800 121 4600 to ask for a printed one. Adults who already get DLA call the same number if they were born after 8 April 1948; GOV.UK says their DLA will end and they will get a letter inviting them to apply for PIP. Adults born on or before 8 April 1948 have a different DLA line, the same number as the Attendance Allowance helpline. If you have already claimed PIP, GOV.UK says to call the PIP number instead.
DLA for children and time abroad: what GOV.UK says
You must contact the DLA helpline if your child plans to go abroad for more than 4 weeks. GOV.UK says their DLA will not usually be affected if they go abroad for less than 13 weeks, or for less than 26 weeks to get medical treatment for a condition which began before they left. The child must be living in England or Wales when you claim, unless you are eligible to claim from abroad. You might still be able to get DLA for children if your child lives in the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein, where you can only get help with daily living tasks, if your child is abroad receiving medical treatment, or if your child lives with a parent working in the armed forces.
Adults on DLA who go abroad
If you get DLA as an adult, GOV.UK says you must contact the Disability Service Centre if you plan to go abroad for more than 4 weeks, and that you may have to repay money if you did not report a change straight away. You can keep claiming while abroad for up to 13 weeks, or 26 weeks if it is for medical treatment. For a permanent move to an EEA country or Switzerland, you may be able to claim the care component if you meet the conditions, such as being covered by the Withdrawal Agreement. GOV.UK says the mobility component cannot be claimed abroad.
Calling a UK 0800 number from abroad
0800 121 4600 is a UK freephone number. GOV.UK lists 0800 calls as free from UK landlines and mobiles, and tells you to check the actual cost with your provider, particularly when calling from abroad. It publishes no international number for the DLA helpline.
What Losali does with this line
Losali is an independent dialler that works in a web browser. Your call travels over the internet and Losali's telecom carrier connects it to 0800 121 4600 in the UK, so all you need is a data connection. There is no app to install and no UK SIM card to buy. Minutes are prepaid and there is no subscription.
- The National Insurance number of the adult who gets DLA, or the child's details and DLA reference.
- The dates of the trip abroad, and whether it is for medical treatment.
- Your new address abroad, if you are moving.
- The opening hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
If you live abroad, and other ways in
GOV.UK tells people who live abroad to write to the Disability Living Allowance Exportability Team to make a claim, change personal details such as an address or bank account, or get help and advice, giving the benefit, your National Insurance number and where you live. Its address is Mail Handling Site A, Wolverhampton, WV98 2AD, United Kingdom. Relay UK users dial 18001 then 0800 121 4600, and a British Sign Language video relay service is offered. In Scotland, children get Child Disability Payment, and Northern Ireland has its own DLA.
What kind of number is this?
Freephone 0800 / 0808. Free to call from inside the UK. Losali shows the price before the call starts.