Armed Forces AFIP and Motability rise 6 April 2026

From 6 April 2026, the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme brings in a set of practical updates designed to make support a little fairer and a little faster. If you’re receiving the Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP), use the Motability Scheme, or are navigating a mental health diagnosis for a claim, here’s what changes and how it might affect you. These are UK‑wide rules that apply to regulars, reservists and veterans whose conditions are accepted as caused wholly or partly by service. (gov.uk)

First, a quick refresher so we’re talking the same language. AFIP is the additional weekly payment for people seriously injured in service on or after 6 April 2005 who hold a qualifying Guaranteed Income Payment (GIP) under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme. Crucially, AFIP is paid at the same rate as the combined enhanced daily living and enhanced mobility components of PIP. That link to PIP matters for the new rates below. (gov.uk)

Your AFIP rate goes up. Because PIP’s enhanced rates increase from April 2026 to £114.60 a week (daily living, enhanced) and £80.00 a week (mobility, enhanced), the AFIP rate rises to £194.60 per week. If you’re already on AFIP, check your four‑weekly statement after 6 April to confirm the new amount shows. (gov.scot)

If you use Motability, up to £80.00 per week of your benefit can be directed to your lease or hire purchase agreement. This aligns with the 2026/27 enhanced mobility rate and slightly improves affordability for drivers who previously saw top‑ups rise with prices. Expect Motability to set out how this flows through your agreement. (gov.scot)

Mental health evidence rules are modernised. Until now, the scheme required a consultant‑grade psychiatrist or consultant clinical psychologist to diagnose a mental disorder for tariff purposes. From April 2026, diagnoses made by a registered mental health professional (doctor, psychologist or nurse) working within a multidisciplinary team that is overseen by a named consultant clinical lead will be accepted. The change should cut waits and reflect how NHS teams actually deliver care, while keeping clinical oversight in place. (judiciary.uk)

Who qualifies for AFIP in the first place? You must have been injured on or after 6 April 2005 and hold an AFCS Guaranteed Income Payment in Bands A to C. AFIP is separate from DWP disability benefits and is paid at the PIP‑linked rate for as long as your qualifying GIP remains in place. You cannot receive AFIP at the same time as PIP, ADP or DLA. If you think you should have been contacted about AFIP but haven’t, speak to Veterans UK. (gov.uk)

There’s also a process fix you’ll notice only if you’re mid‑appeal or review. Decisions that follow a formal reconsideration can now satisfy what the rules call “Condition B”. In plain English: more reconsidered decisions will count for the additional elements that depend on that condition, reducing some of the admin friction people have faced.

Behind the scenes, the Order tidies up pension‑scheme references for reservists, updating names to the Full‑time Reserve Service Pension Scheme 1997 (FTRS 1997) and the Non Regular Permanent Staff Scheme 2011 (NRPS 2011). It also aligns wording for bereavement payments. These updates are about consistency across defence legislation rather than changing what you’re paid.

Tariff tables are refreshed too. One temporary award in the fractures and dislocations section becomes permanent, and the amounts in the main tariff table are uplifted. If your award sits on those tables, your letter from Veterans UK should explain the level and any uprating applied from April.

What should you do now? If you already receive AFIP, keep an eye on your next payment after 6 April to see the uplift. If you’re using Motability, your £80 allowance contribution should flow automatically, but check your lease documents or portal for confirmation. If your claim turns on a mental health diagnosis, ask your clinical team whether your assessment sits within a multidisciplinary service overseen by a consultant lead; that will meet the new rules without sending you back to start again. And if any of this doesn’t match your award or letters, contact Veterans UK for clarification. (gov.uk)