Who is eligible?

You can apply for ESA if you are employed, self-employed, unemployed or a student. You may get it if you have an illness or disability that affects your ability to work, and you are:

• under State Pension Age;

• not getting Statutory Sick Pay or Statutory Maternity Pay and you have not gone back to work; and

• not getting Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA).

There are three types of ESA:

• new-style ESA;

• contributory ESA; and

• income-related ESA.

You can now only apply for income-based ESA or contribution-based ESA if you have an illness or disability that affects your ability to work and you either get the severe disability premium (see page 12) or you got the severe disability premium within the last month and you are still eligible for it. To apply for contribution-based ESA, you must also have been an employee or self-employed and paid National Insurance contributions, usually in the last two to three years. National Insurance credits can also count (see page 8). National insurance contributions made in the last two to three years do not affect your eligibility for income-based ESA.