New style esa

marcushodgkiss93

Can any one help how many credits do you need to be able to claim please 

janer1967

Hi and welcome, I don't think it is about number of credits more about how much national insurance contributions were made in a given timescale

Adrian_Scope

Hello @marcushodgkiss93.
This is from the Gov site on New Style ESA eligibility which may help a little.

‘New style’ ESA

Most new claims are for ‘new style’ ESA.

To get ‘new style’ ESA you need to have both:

• worked as an employee or been self-employed
• paid enough National Insurance contributions, usually in the last 2 to 3 years - National Insurance credits also count

Check your National Insurance record for gaps.

You cannot get ‘new style’ ESA if you:

• get the severe disability premium, or are entitled to it
• got or were entitled to the severe disability premium in the last month, and you’re still eligible for it

You cannot get ‘new style’ ESA if you’re getting Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from an employer. You can apply for ‘new style’ ESA up to 3 months before your SSP ends. You’ll start getting ‘new style’ ESA as soon as your SSP ends.