Moving to Scotland — PIP to Adult Disability Payment Application

If you are receiving Personal Independence Payment in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland and move to Scotland, you need to make a new application for Adult Disability Payment. The managed transfer programme that moved existing Scottish PIP recipients to ADP completed on 28 August 2025 — cross-border moves follow a different process.

What Happens When You Move

When you move to Scotland while receiving PIP, tell the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) if you are moving from England or Wales, or the Department for Communities (NI) if you are moving from Northern Ireland. Contact Social Security Scotland and make a new ADP application as soon as possible after you move.

Your PIP continues for 13 weeks from the date you move to Scotland. This gives you time to make the new ADP application; it is not an automatic transfer of your PIP award.

Do You Have to Re-Apply?

Social Security Scotland decides your new ADP application using the application and supporting information it needs, which may sometimes include a consultation. Your PIP assessment does not automatically carry across as an ADP award.

Contact Social Security Scotland on 0800 182 2222 as soon as you know you are moving. They can explain how to apply and what supporting information they need. The earlier you make contact, the smaller the risk of a gap in payments.

Protecting Your Payment Date

The biggest practical risk is a gap between your last PIP payment and your first ADP payment. If you delay telling your current benefit agency or making the new ADP application, PIP may stop before ADP starts.

To minimise this risk:

1. Tell the DWP if you are moving from England or Wales, or the Department for Communities (NI) if you are moving from Northern Ireland, and provide the move date
2. Contact Social Security Scotland at the same time, before or immediately after the move
3. Keep records of all calls and correspondence with dates
4. If asked to submit an ADP application, do so immediately — return Part 2 within eight weeks to protect your backdated entitlement date

Will Your Award Amount Change?

ADP and PIP use the same weekly rates and point thresholds — 8–11 points for Standard rate, 12 or more for Enhanced rate. Their activity descriptors are very similar. Both assessments apply reliability criteria; ADP's are set out in Regulation 7.

Social Security Scotland makes a new decision on your ADP application based on your application and supporting information. If you later receive ADP, future reviews will use Social Security Scotland's review process.

Moving Out of Scotland

If you are going the other way — leaving Scotland for England, Wales, or Northern Ireland — your ADP continues for 13 weeks from the date you leave. After that, you need to claim PIP through the DWP if you move to England or Wales, or through the Department for Communities (NI) if you move to Northern Ireland. Report the move to Social Security Scotland promptly so they can manage the end of your ADP award and avoid overpayments.

Our ADP claim guide covers cross-border transfers in context, alongside the full application process and how ADP's scoring differs in practice from PIP.

See more Scotland guides →