PAY DAY
Pay rise for millions on Universal Credit from this week – how much more will you get?
Scroll down to find out if you're missing out on benefits
MILLIONS of Brits on Universal Credit will see more money in their bank accounts this week thanks to a long-awaited benefits boost.
A number of those on Universal Credit will see the money drop from Tuesday, May 13.
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The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) confirmed earlier this year that most payments would rise by 1.7%, to 4.1% with some extra elements – including support for carers and parents – increasing by even more.
But because Universal Credit is paid monthly in arrears based on assessment periods, many claimants have not yet seen the higher rates in their actual payments.
That’s now about to change.
If your assessment period started before April 7, your May Universal Credit payment will include the new rates for the first time.
READ MORE ON UNIVERSAL CREDIT
However, if your assessment period started on or after April 7, you’ll need to wait until June to see the extra cash land in your account.
The hike will offer some welcome breathing room for thousands of families still feeling the squeeze from the cost of living.
How much more will you get?
Here’s a full rundown of the new monthly Universal Credit rates and how much they’ve gone up by:
Standard Allowance (monthly):
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- Single, aged under 25: now £316.98 — up by £5.30
- Single, 25 or over: now £400.14 — a rise of £6.69
- Joint claimants both under 25: now £497.55 — increased by £8.32
- Joint claimants where one or both are 25+: now £628.10 — that’s £10.50 more
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Extra for Children:
- First child (born before April 6, 2017): now £339.00 — up from £333.33
- Each additional child (or born after April 6, 2017): now £292.81 — that’s £4.89 more
- Disabled child (lower rate): now £158.76 — previously £156.11
- Disabled child (higher rate): now £495.87 — increased from £487.58
Support for Health Conditions:
- Limited capability for work: now £158.76 — a bump of £2.65
- Work-related activity group: now £423.27 — up by £7.08
Carer’s Element:
- Caring at least 35 hours a week: now £201.68 — a rise of £3.37
Work Allowance (for those in work):
- Higher rate (if you don’t get help with housing): now £684.00 — up from £673.00
- Lower rate (if you do get housing help): now £411.00 — increased from £404.00
When will you see the boost?
- Assessment period started before April 7? Your May payment will reflect the increase.
- Assessment period started on or after April 7? You’ll see the higher rate in June.
Universal Credit is paid in arrears, so your monthly payment always reflects your circumstances from the month before.
Are you missing out on benefits?
YOU can use a benefits calculator to help check that you are not missing out on money you are entitled to
Charity Turn2Us' benefits calculator works out what you could get.
Entitledto's free calculator determines whether you qualify for various benefits, tax credit and Universal Credit.
MoneySavingExpert.com and charity StepChange both have benefits tools powered by Entitledto's data.
You can use Policy in Practice's calculator to determine which benefits you could receive and how much cash you'll have left over each month after paying for housing costs.
Your exact entitlement will only be clear when you make a claim, but calculators can indicate what you might be eligible for.
Who can claim Universal Credit?
Whether you are eligible will depend on your specific circumstances.
You may be eligible if you meet all of the following criteria:
- Are on a low income or out of work
- Are aged 18 or over (some exceptions for 16-17s)
- Are under State Pension age (or your partner is)
- Have savings of £16,000 or less
- Live in the UK
Your partner’s income and savings are also taken into account – even if they’re not applying.
EU, EEA and Swiss citizens will need settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme to qualify.
If you’re unsure what you’re entitled to, use the government’s free benefits calculator to get a quick estimate.
How to apply
You can apply online at gov.uk/universal-credit. You’ll need:
- Your National Insurance number
- A form of ID (passport, driving licence or similar)
- Bank details
- Income and housing info
In other related benefit news, pension savers have been pocketing thousands in tax refunds after being overcharged — and now fresh HMRC changes could stop millions more being stung.
Over 15,000 people got an average refund of £2,881 between January and March this year after being overtaxed when they dipped into their pension pots.
Read More on The Sun
In total, £44million was handed back in just three months, according to new figures — with hopes the amount overpaid will fall thanks to recent rule tweaks.
HMRC rolled out a new system this month, aimed at stopping retirees from being wrongly whacked with a sky-high emergency tax bill when making a withdrawal.
Will I be better off on Universal Credit?
ANALYSIS by James Flanders, The Sun's Chief Consumer Reporter:
Around 1.4million people on legacy benefits will be better off after switching to Universal Credit, according to the government.
A further 300,000 would see no change in payments, while around 900,000 would be worse off under Universal Credit.
Of these, around 600,000 can get top-up payments (transitional protection) if they move under the managed migration process, so they don't lose out on cash immediately.
The majority of those - around 400,000 - are claiming employment support allowance (ESA).
Around 100,000 are on tax credits, while fewer than 50,000 each on other legacy benefits are expected to be affected.
Those who move voluntarily and are worse off won't get these top-up payments and could lose cash.
Those who miss the managed migration deadline and later make a claim may not get transitional protection.
The clock starts ticking on the three-month countdown from the date of the first letter, and reminders are sent via post and text message.
There is a one-month grace period after this, during which any claim to Universal Credit is backdated, and transitional protection can still be awarded.
Examples of those who may be entitled to less on Universal Credit include:
- Households getting ESA and the severe disability premium and enhanced disability premium
- Households with the lower disabled child addition on legacy benefits
- Self-employed households who are subject to the Minimum Income Floor after the 12-month grace period has ended
- In-work households that worked a specific number of hours (e.g. lone parent working 16 hours claiming working tax credits
- Households receiving tax credits with savings of more than £6,000 (and up to £16,000)
Either way, if these households don't switch in the future, they risk missing out on any future benefit increase and seeing payments frozen.