Claimant Has No NINO And Over 2 Months Since Claim Submitted – Enquiry Centre Only (Info)

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To claim tax credits a claimant must normally provide a NINO or the information to allow a NINO to be allocated to them

You may receive enquiries from claimants who

• Have never had a NINO allocated to them

Or

• Provided a NINO which cannot be traced or accepted on the computer and their claim has not been processed after two months

Note: If you receive an enquiry from a claimant who submitted their claim less than two months ago, advise the claimant that we are dealing with their claim and that they should receive notification from us in due course

You must check whether the claimant has been referred to DWP / DSD for a NINO allocation by

• Asking the claimant if they have received a form TC154 from the Tax Credit Office (TCO)

And, if the claimant has received a form TC154

• Asking them if they have waited at least five weeks before contacting us

Note: The form TC154 tells the claimant that they will receive a letter from DWP / DSD within 5 weeks asking them to attend an interview to prove their identity

If the claimant has not been referred to DWP / DSD for a NINO allocation, you must check if their claim is incomplete or has failed verification for the reason Applicant Not Matched.

If the claimant has

• Been referred to DWP / DSD for a NINO allocation, but the claimant has not waited at least five weeks before contacting us, advise the claimant that they must wait at least five weeks from the date they received the form TC154. If, after this time, DWP / DSD has not written to them to arrange an interview, the claimant must contact us again

• Not been referred to DWP / DSD for a NINO allocation and their claim has failed verification for a reason other than Applicant Not Matched or the claim is incomplete, you must follow the guidance in Applications Work Lists

• Not been referred to DWP / DSD for a NINO allocation and their claim has failed verification for the reason Applicant Not Matched, you must advise the claimant that they will receive an update from the TCO within 48 hours and then fax the enquiry to the Specialist Trace Unit (STU). STU will telephone the claimant with an update within 48 hours

• Been referred to DWP / DSD for a NINO allocation and they have waited at least five weeks before contacting us, you must advise the claimant that they will receive an update from us within 48 hours and then fax the enquiry to STU. STU will telephone the claimant with an update within 48 hours

If the claim is still with Service Group, STU will liase with them to chase up the progress of the claim and advise the claimant accordingly.