No. Attendance Allowance is tax-free. GOV.UK’s Income Tax guidance lists it among the most common state benefits you do not pay Income Tax on (GOV.UK, Income Tax: introduction: Tax-free and taxable state benefits, checked 1 November 2026). That applies to both rates, whatever else you receive.
The confusion usually comes from the benefits paid alongside it. The State Pension is taxable, and so is Carer’s Allowance, which often goes to the person looking after someone on Attendance Allowance. In the same household, then, one benefit can be taxed and another not.
Attendance Allowance is on the tax-free list
GOV.UK splits state benefits into two lists for Income Tax. Attendance Allowance is on the tax-free one, with Pension Credit, Personal Independence Payment, Disability Living Allowance, Housing Benefit, and the Winter Fuel Payment and Christmas Bonus (GOV.UK, Income Tax: introduction: Tax-free and taxable state benefits, checked 1 November 2026). Neither rate is taxed.
It is not means-tested either. GOV.UK states that what you earn or how much you have in savings will not affect what you get (GOV.UK, Attendance Allowance: what you'll get, checked 1 November 2026). So it sits outside both the tax system and the means test.
Why it gets mixed up with the State Pension
The State Pension is on GOV.UK’s taxable list (GOV.UK, Income Tax: introduction: Tax-free and taxable state benefits, checked 1 November 2026). Both come from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), and they are often paid into the same bank account, so many people assume they are treated the same way. They are not.
If you get both, only the State Pension counts towards your taxable income. Whether you then pay any tax depends on your total taxable income, such as the State Pension plus any private or workplace pension. Attendance Allowance is left out of that sum.
The carer’s side: Carer’s Allowance is taxable
Attendance Allowance is one of the benefits that lets a carer claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you (GOV.UK, Carer's Allowance: eligibility, checked 1 November 2026). So the two often arrive in the same family, one paid to the person being cared for and one to their carer, and they are taxed differently.
Carer’s Allowance is on GOV.UK’s taxable list, and so is Carer Support Payment in Scotland (GOV.UK, Income Tax: introduction: Tax-free and taxable state benefits, checked 1 November 2026). So the person being cared for keeps their Attendance Allowance in full, while the carer’s own benefit counts towards their taxable income. Our Carer’s Allowance guide covers how much it pays and who can claim.
It does not count against Pension Credit
Attendance Allowance is ignored as income when Pension Credit is worked out. GOV.UK names it among the benefits that are not counted (GOV.UK, Pension Credit: eligibility, checked 1 November 2026). Getting it does not reduce your Pension Credit, and it can increase it.
GOV.UK says you could get an extra £86.05 a week in Pension Credit for a severe disability if you get Attendance Allowance (GOV.UK, Pension Credit: what you'll get, checked 1 November 2026). It also says that getting Attendance Allowance could mean extra Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction (GOV.UK, Attendance Allowance: what you'll get, checked 1 November 2026). Our Pension Credit calculator shows roughly what you could get.
In Scotland: Pension Age Disability Payment
In Scotland, Pension Age Disability Payment has replaced Attendance Allowance, and it is paid by Social Security Scotland rather than the Department for Work and Pensions. MoneyHelper, the government-backed money guidance service, describes it as tax-free and not means-tested, the same as Attendance Allowance (MoneyHelper, https: //www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/benefits/benefits-in-later-life/how-to-claim-the-pension-age-disability-payment, checked 1 November 2026).
GOV.UK’s own list includes Adult Disability Payment, the Scottish benefit for working-age adults, among the tax-free ones (GOV.UK, Income Tax: introduction: Tax-free and taxable state benefits, checked 1 November 2026). Our Pension Age Disability Payment guide covers how the Scottish benefit differs.
What this means if you have not claimed
Attendance Allowance is not taxed, not means-tested and not counted against Pension Credit. What decides a claim is whether you have reached State Pension age and need help with personal care, or supervision, because of a disability or health condition, and have done for at least six months (GOV.UK, Attendance Allowance: eligibility, checked 1 November 2026). Residence rules apply too.
Our Attendance Allowance guide explains who can get it, and our Attendance Allowance pitfalls guide covers the mistakes on the form that get claims refused.