Apply to the Windrush Compensation Scheme

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Eligibility

You can apply for the scheme if:

  • you’ve had losses because you could not prove your right to stay in the UK
  • you’ve had losses because you’re the partner, child, brother, sister or parent of someone who could not prove their right to stay in the UK
  • you represent the estate of someone who had losses because they could not prove their right to stay in the UK

If you are applying for yourself (a ‘primary claimant’)

You can apply if one of the following is true:

  • you came to the UK from a Commonwealth country before 1973
  • your parents or grandparents came to the UK from a Commonwealth country before 1973
  • you came to the UK from any country before 31 December 1988 and are now settled here

You’ll need to show that you suffered losses because you could not prove your right to stay in the UK.

Read Primary claimant: Windrush compensation claim guidance for details of the evidence you will need to provide.

If you are applying as a close family member

You must show that you experienced a loss because a close family member could not prove that they had a right to live in the UK.

The family member must be your partner, parent, child, brother or sister. They do not need to have made a claim, but they must be or have been eligible.

Read Close family member: Windrush compensation claim guidance for details of the evidence you will need to provide.

If you are under 18, you need a parent or guardian to submit the claim on your behalf.

If you are applying as representative of an estate

You must show that the person who died:

  • would have been eligible for the scheme as a primary claimant
  • suffered losses because they were unable to prove that they had a right to live in the UK.

Read Representative of an estate: Windrush compensation claim guidance for details of the evidence you will need to provide.

You can get support if you do not currently have the legal right to deal with someone’s estate (probate). This includes help applying for probate and financial help, for example with legal costs up to £1,500.

View a printable version of the whole guide

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