Infected Blood Payment Scheme for NI
The Infected Blood Payment Scheme for Northern Ireland is a payment scheme to provide support for individuals and their families, who have been infected with, or otherwise affected by HIV, Hepatitis C, or both, following treatment with NHS-supplied blood, tissue or blood products.
Eligibility
You may be entitled to receive financial support if you were infected with, or otherwise affected by, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prior to 17th February 1992 and/or Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) prior to 1st September 1991, as a result of treatment with NHS blood, blood products or tissue in Northern Ireland. You are also eligible if you became infected by someone (for example, your spouse, civil partner, partner or parent) whose HIV and/ or Hepatitis C is from receiving contaminated blood, tissue or blood products during NHS treatment in Northern Ireland.
If you now live in another country, you are still eligible if the treatment took place in Northern Ireland.
Family Members
In circumstances were the infected person has died, immediate family members may also be eligible for support.
Support Available
The Scheme offers various types of financial support, including:
- one off ex gratia payments in relation to HIV, chronic & advanced Hepatitis C;
- one off ex gratia payment in relation to widows, widowers and partners of deceased beneficiaries;
- monthly or quarterly support payments for infected beneficiaries;
- annual winter fuel payment;
- discretionary one off grant support;
- discretionary income top-up support (means-tested).
Support Payment Rates 2019-2020
| Payment Category | Annual Amount |
| Hepatitis C Stage 1 | £4,096 |
| Hepatitis C Stage 2 | £18,432 |
| Mono HIV | £18,432 |
| Co-Infected HIV & Hepatitis C Stage 1 | £22,528 |
| Co-Infected HIV & Hepatitis C Stage 2 | £36,864 |
| Winter Fuel Payment | £531 |
One Off Lump Sum Payment Rates 2019-2020
| Payment Category | Maximum Payment Amount |
| Hepatitis C Stage 1 | £20,000 |
| Hepatitis C Stage 2 | £50,000 |
| Mono HIV | £80,000 |
| Co-Infected HIV & Hepatitis C Stage 1 | £100,000 |
| Co-Infected HIV & Hepatitis C Stage 2 | £150,000 |
| Bereaved Spouse/Partner | £10,000 |
How payments affect tax and benefits
If you live in the UK, payments from the Infected Blood Payment Scheme NI will not affect your tax and benefits.
Income Tax
Any lump sum or regular payments from the scheme, such as annual payments or income top-up support, are not taxable. This means that the Infected Blood Payment Scheme for Northern Ireland does not need to deduct Income Tax from your payments.
You don’t need to declare the payments in any income tax return you submit to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Benefits
Payments from the scheme don’t count when applying for any of the following means-tested benefits from the Department for Communities:
- Income support
- Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- State Pension Credit
- Housing Benefit
- Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Universal Credit
This means that your income and any grants from the scheme are not taken into account when the Department for Communities assess your application.
You're still required to declare to the Department for Communities any payments that you receive from the scheme.
If you don’t tell the Department for Communities about payments received from the scheme, they won’t be able to determine what money they should ignore. This might mean any benefits that depend on the amount of money you have could be affected. If you have any problems, let us know. We can provide you with a letter to confirm payments you have received from us and inform the Department for Communities to disregard our payments to you.
Making a claim
The UK support schemes ( Eileen Trust, MacFarlane Trust, MFET Ltd, Skipton Fund & Caxton Foundation) are no longer in operation and there is no option available to continue to receive payments from these schemes. If you would like to apply to the Infected Blood Payment Scheme for Northern Ireland for the first time or if you have any queries please contact the scheme by email (bso.ibss@hscni.net), telephone (028 9536 3817) or in writing to:-