Housing

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On this page you will find what your homeless rights are if you have nowhere to live and how the homeless application process works.

Your rights

After getting leave to remain, you will have full access to public funds.

This means you will be able to:

apply for benefits if you have no money to live on
apply for homeless support if you have nowhere to live

To apply for homeless support you need to consider a few things carefully as getting support depends on:

where you are living currently
where you want to live
what connection you have to that local area

Your homeless rights

If you are currently living in asylum support accommodation in Scotland

After getting leave to remain, your asylum support will stop and you will have to move out of your asylum support accommodation. Your asylum support accommodation provider will send you an eviction letter called Notice to Quit. The letter will include the date you are expected to leave your accommodation. This letter confirms you are at risk of becoming homeless and the local council now has a legal duty to provide you homeless support. Without this eviction letter you won’t be able to progress the homeless process. You may get this letter very quickly or it can sometimes take months. You have the right to make a homeless application anywhere in Scotland and you don’t have to make the application to the local council you are living in.

If you are a newly granted refugee living in asylum support accommodation in Northern Ireland, England or Wales

If you are granted leave to remain in the last 6 months, as a newly granted refugee living in asylum support accommodation in Northern Ireland, England or Wales, you have the right to access homeless support in any Scottish local council.

If you have not been receiving asylum support in the last 6 months and are living in a local council area in England or Wales you might be considered to have a local connection to that local council and won’t be eligible for homeless support in Scotland. Shelter Scotland has more information on local connection in Scotland.

If you are staying at a friend’s or family member’s accommodation in Scotland

If you are staying at a friend’s or family member’s accommodation in Northern Ireland, England or Wales

If you are living in Northern Ireland, England or Wales with friends and family, you can make a homeless application in Scotland in any of the local councils if you have a local connection. A local connection is for example, if you or a household member works in the area, have other family members living in the area or some other circumstances. Find out more about local connection in Scotland.

If you want to live outside of Scotland

Make your homeless application

You should apply for homeless support as soon as you get your asylum decision letter granting you leave to remain.

The homeless application process is slightly different across each local council. You can make a homeless application by going to your local council or contacting them online or by phone. If you need homeless support in an emergency check Shelter Scotland’s page on emergency homeless help from the council.

After you make your homeless application, the council will assess your situation to decide what help they will give you. They will arrange an interview with a caseworker from the homelessness team. They will ask you some questions to assess what support they will give you and what your housing needs are. You have the right to have your homeless application assessed by the local council and have that confirmed in writing. When you present as homeless to one local council, they should not ask you to present to another local council.

When talking to you, your local council should:

When talking to your local council, you should:

take a note of the full name, job title, email address and phone number of your homelessness caseworker
give them a copy of your asylum decision letter, Mears letter and BRP card
ask for an interpreter if you need one. You can ask for an interpreter when you make a homeless application, or have any other conversation with your homelessness caseworker
tell them if you or anyone in your household have any health problems or disabilities. This might affect the type of accommodation you need. The homelessness caseworker may contact your GP or medical specialist for more information about the health issues
share any letter you have received from your GP or medical specialist explaining your health conditions and how it may impact on your housing needs. This may help the local council assess the type of accommodation they can offer you
share any future changes in your family size because of family reunion or pregnancy. This is important for the size of accommodation you may need
share any past or ongoing problems you have had with domestic abuse or other forms of harassment. This will help to avoid areas where you are unsafe

Moving on from asylum support accommodation

The Home Office’s accommodation provider, Mears should inform the local council you are living in that you are at risk of becoming homeless and that you will need homeless support so that the council can look for suitable accommodation for you.

It is a good idea for you to call the local council to check that they know about you. If you plan to move to a different local council in Scotland you need to make contact with that local council yourself.

Temporary accommodation

When you leave your asylum support accommodation the local council will have to provide you with temporary accommodation. The temporary accommodation is offered on a no choice basis. This could be any type of accommodation the local council have available. You will be in temporary accommodation until you receive a permanent offer of accommodation. Depending on the local council area this period could be shorter or longer. You will be allocated a caseworker from the council who will explore permanent housing options.

You are liable for rent including council tax, utility bills etc. In most cases this will be paid from benefits, which your local council will help you apply for. You may also have to pay service charges.

If you do not wish to take a local authority's offer of temporary accommodation, you can live with friends and family while your homelessness application is processed. It might impact on benefits, so you should get advice if you or the person you are living with is on benefit. You can request temporary accommodation, if your situation changes while your application is being processed.

If you start working and you are on low income, part of your housing costs may come from benefits and you may have to cover some of the cost of your temporary accommodation. Speak to a financial well-being adviser for a benefit calculation to assess your circumstances.

Shelter Scotland, housing rights charity has more information about temporary accommodation.

Long-term settled accommodation

When the local council begins to look for permanent accommodation for you and your household, they will try to match your needs. Once the local council has identified suitable accommodation for you, they will contact you and let you know. They will ask you to view the property and sign the tenancy. This may take several months or longer. If you refuse the offer of permanent accommodation, you risk losing the support from the local council to find any other permanent accommodation. If you are in this situation, contact Shelter Scotland for advice in the first instance.

The offer of accommodation needs to be suitable for you, for example the accommodation needs to meet your health needs or disability. It is important that any additional needs you raise as part of this process will need to be evidenced. This means if it is a health condition the local council may need confirmation from your GP or medical specialist.

The local council will ask you about the areas you want to live in during the assessment process. You will be in a queue to join a suitable property list to come up. Please note that the local council has a legal duty to offer you one suitable accommodation. If you are concerned about the accommodation offered to you, we request that you consider the offer and seek advice before you refuse. There is a process for requesting to review the offer if you feel it is not a suitable offer. If you refuse the offer, the local council may tell you they no longer have any duty to offer you another accommodation.

Shelter Scotland, a housing rights charity has more information about permanent accommodation.

Other housing options

If you are granted leave to remain, you have the same housing rights as any other UK resident. This means you can:

rent from private landlords
rent from social landlords who has social housing

Social housing is provided by local councils and Housing Associations. Social housing is cheaper than private rents, gives you more tenant rights and comes with a long-term tenancy agreement. However, you may have to wait a long time to rent from a social landlord. You can ask your local council for information on your housing options. Shelter Scotland is a housing rights charity that has useful information on housing options and applying for social housing.

Need more help?

Call our free, confidential, helpline to speak to one of our experienced advisers (you can ask for an interpreter) or email refugeesupport@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk.

0808 196 7274

Housing

Housing

On this page you will find what your homeless rights are if you have nowhere to live and how the homeless application process works.

Need more help?

More in this section

Find support
in your community

Refugee integration
service

Support for
families

Housing

Housing

On this page you will find what your homeless rights are if you have nowhere to live and how the homeless application process works.

Need more help?

More in this section

Find support in your community

Refugee integrationservice

Support for families

Find support
in your community

Refugee integration
service

Support for
families