Being temporarily absent from your home

If you leave your home for a short time, your Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Reduction will not change. This also applies to anyone in your household.

However, you must tell us if you or somebody in your home:

• goes abroad for four weeks or more; abroad means outside of England, Scotland or Wales. (Going to Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man also counts as going abroad.)
• is absent from your home for 13 weeks or more
• is absent and does not intend to return to the home

In some cases, you can extend the time you are away from home without it affecting your Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Reduction. 

When you notify us that you or a member of your household is temporarily absent from your home, you need to tell us the reason why and the expected dates of the absence.

You can do this by using our  change in circumstance reporting process.