Moving into a care home checklist: before, on the day and after

Moving into a care home means sorting the contract and fees, telling the benefits offices and other organisations, arranging the GP and medicines, packing, and then watching closely in the first few weeks. This checklist takes you through each stage in order. Any care home stay of one night or longer must be reported to the office that pays each benefit.

In short

• In England, people with more than £23,250 in capital usually pay their own fees; between £14,250 and £23,250, £1 a week is counted for every £250.
• Self-funders usually keep Attendance Allowance, PIP and DLA; if the council or NHS pays, most of these stop within 28 days, apart from mobility payments.
• If the move is permanent and the council will help, the home is ignored for the first 12 weeks, and a deferred payment agreement can delay a sale.
• A home left empty by someone who has moved into a care home does not get a council tax bill while it stays empty.
• Residents whose fees are council-funded keep a Personal Expenses Allowance of at least £31.80 a week in 2026/27.
• Read the contract before moving day: fees, what is included, notice, trial period and fee increases.

If you are still choosing, start with our care home visit checklist and questions to ask when visiting. This page picks up once a home has been chosen.

The moving into a care home checklist

Before the move: paperwork and money

• Check the home’s latest CQC rating and report date (see CQC ratings explained).
• Get the contract before moving day and read it fully. Our guide to care home contracts lists what to look for.
• Confirm the weekly fee, what it includes and what costs extra, such as hairdressing, chiropody or trips.
• Check the notice period, the length of any trial period and how fee increases are worked out.
• Ask the council whether the move is classed as temporary or permanent. It changes how the home is treated.
• If the council is funding, ask whether there is a top-up and who will pay it.
• If your parent has a nursing need, ask how NHS-funded nursing care will be applied for.
• Check that the lasting power of attorney is registered, or consider deputyship if your parent cannot make decisions.
• Decide who will pay the fees, from which account, and set up the payment method.
• Work out how the personal allowance or spending money will be handled.

Before the move: who to tell

• Attendance Allowance helpline, or the Disability Service Centre for PIP or DLA.
• The Pension Service, for State Pension and Pension Credit.
• The council, for Housing Benefit and council tax.
• The Carer’s Allowance Unit, if someone claims Carer’s Allowance for your parent.
• Have ready: National Insurance number, the home’s name and address, admission date, how the stay is funded, and any hospital stays in the 28 days before.
• Private and workplace pension providers and HMRC, if your parent pays tax.
• Banks, building societies and premium bonds, with the new address.
• Home insurer, as many policies limit cover once a home is empty.
• Energy, water, phone, broadband and TV providers, if the home will be empty.
• DVLA, if your parent still holds a driving licence.
• Royal Mail redirection, and the electoral register at the new address.

Before the move: health and belongings

• Ask whether your parent can keep their GP or must register with the surgery that covers the home.
• Gather every current medicine in its original packaging, with an up-to-date list.
• Pass on copies of any DNACPR form or advance decision.
• Ask how the home arranges dentist, optician, hearing and podiatry visits.
• Write a one-page life story: routines, food, faith, names that matter, what calms them.
• Label clothes and pack using our what to pack for a care home list.
• Ask which furniture, electricals and pictures are allowed, and measure the room.

On moving day

• Arrive at a calm time of day, not at mealtimes or a shift change.
• Hand over medicines and the medicines list to the nurse or senior carer in person.
• Set up the room with familiar things before your parent sees it, if you can.
• Meet the named key worker and the manager, and swap contact details.
• Check the call bell is within reach and your parent knows how to use it.
• Agree how and when the family will be contacted, and who is the main contact.
• Keep the goodbye short and warm. Staff are used to helping with the first evening.

The first weeks

• Visit at different times of day, including a mealtime.
• Ask when the first care plan review is, and attend it.
• Check the first invoice against the contract.
• Check benefits have changed as expected, and keep the letters.
• Watch for weight loss, low mood, falls or bruising, and ask about anything that worries you.
• Before a trial period ends, decide together whether the home is right.
• Decide what happens to the family home, and get advice before selling or transferring it.

Print this checklist

Why each stage matters

Paperwork and money first. Disputes usually come from terms nobody read. The Competition and Markets Authority’s consumer law advice for care homes says homes should give this information upfront, before a place is agreed. If the council is involved, the 12-week property disregard and deferred payment agreements give you time before any sale. Our care cost calculator shows how long savings last.

Telling people protects your parent from overpayments. Under the GOV.UK rules on benefits in a care home, self-funders usually keep Attendance Allowance, PIP and DLA, plus the severe disability addition in Pension Credit. If the council or NHS pays, most of these stop within 28 days. Overpayments can be reclaimed, so report quickly. See State Pension and benefits in a care home for detail.

Health handover on day one avoids missed doses and repeat questions. Most people register with a GP near where they live, and many homes work with one local surgery.

The first weeks are an adjustment for everyone. If things do not improve, see changing care homes, and if the move is weighing on you, read our guide to guilt about moving a parent into care.

Frequently asked questions

Who do you need to tell when someone moves into a care home?

Tell every office that pays a benefit: the Attendance Allowance helpline or Disability Service Centre, the Pension Service and the council for Housing Benefit and council tax. Then tell pension providers, banks, HMRC if they pay tax, the home insurer, utility companies, DVLA and Royal Mail. Any stay of one night or longer must be reported.

Does Attendance Allowance stop when you go into a care home?

Not if your parent pays the full fees themselves. Self-funders usually keep Attendance Allowance, PIP and DLA. If the council or NHS pays for the place, these benefits usually stop within 28 days of admission, although the mobility part of PIP or DLA can continue. Report the move straight away to avoid an overpayment.

Do you pay council tax when you go into a care home?

A home that is empty because the owner or tenant has moved into a care home or hospital does not get a council tax bill for as long as it stays empty. If someone else still lives there, such as a partner, the bill continues, but a discount may apply. Contact the council with the date of the move.

Does my mum have to change GP when she moves into a care home?

Often, yes. Most people need to register with a surgery that covers where they live, and many care homes work with one local practice that visits regularly. If the home is near her old surgery, she may be able to stay. You do not need to tell the old surgery; it is told when she registers.

What should you check in a care home contract before moving in?

Check the weekly fee and what it includes, extras, how and when fees can rise, the notice period on both sides, fees charged after a death, the trial period, any deposit, and who pays any top-up. Ask for the contract before moving day, and query any term you do not understand before signing.

Sources

• Claiming benefits if you’re going into a care home (GOV.UK)
• Council Tax: second homes and empty properties (GOV.UK)
• Care homes: consumer law advice for providers (Competition and Markets Authority)
• Care and Support Statutory Guidance (GOV.UK)
• How to register with a GP surgery (NHS)
• Care Quality Commission

General information, not legal or financial advice. Figures for 2026/27, checked October 2026.

Reviewed by The Care Panel team on 29 October 2026. This guide is general information about care in England, not legal, medical or financial advice. Rules and rates change; check with your council or an adviser before making decisions.