01 August 2023 , 13:21
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More households claiming older legacy benefits will be told to move to Universal Credit throughout August.
Universal Credit is replacing the old-style benefits including Tax Credits and Housing Benefit. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) wants the majority of people moved over by December 2024.
You should receive a "migration notice" in the post, giving you three months notice to start claiming Universal Credit. If you don’t claim within this time, your current benefits will stop.
You may be moved across earlier if your circumstances change, or you can choose to move over earlier if you think you’ll be better off claiming Universal Credit.
The process of transferring people over from the old benefit system started again in May 2022, having been paused due to Covid. Those who need to move are being contacted in stages.
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The DWP will make contact with people in the following areas next month:
West Scotland
Derbyshire
South London
Staffordshire
West Yorkshire
What benefits are being replaced by Universal Credit?
Universal Credit is replacing the following six benefits:
Working Tax Credit
Child Tax Credit
Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
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Income Support
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
Housing Benefit
Those who claim income-related ESA and do not get Tax Credits have a slightly longer deadline and will be transferred across by 2028.
If you will eventually need to move over to Universal Credit, you should use one of the following free benefit calculators to get a rough idea about whether you will be better off.
Policy in Practice calculator
entitledto calculator
Turn2us calculator
If you think you will be better off, seek expert advice first before switching to Universal Credit - once you make the move, you can’t go back to your old benefits.
You can get free benefits advice from Citizens Advice or Turn2Us. The DWP claims 1.4million people (55%) will be better off on Universal Credit, and 900,000 (35%) would be worse off.
The other 300,000 benefit claimants will see no change.
According to MoneySavingExpert.com, those who are more likely to benefit from being on Universal Credit include:
Most people who work and rent
Some people who have 'higher earnings' but don't rent
Those who have childcare costs - particularly higher monthly costs
Those who are most likely to be worse off include:
Those who aren't in work
Those who work but don't pay rent
Self-employed workers earning less than the 'minimum income floor'
Those with savings over £16,000
Some with disabilities or caring responsibilities
If you are moved over to Universal Credit through managed migration, and you'll be worse off, you will get monthly transition payments to cover any financial shortfall.
The transitional protection lasts until there is no difference between the amount awarded under Universal Credit and what you received before under legacy benefits.
Once you make a Universal Credit claim, your old benefits will be stopped and you'll have to wait five weeks for your first Universal Credit payment to arrive.
Some legacy benefits - including Housing Benefit, Income Support, income-related ESA and income-based JSA - will "run on" for two weeks to help bridge that gap. Tax credits payments will stop as soon as you claim Universal Credit.
You may also be able to claim other benefits alongside Universal Credit. For example, you could be eligible for New Style ESA if you're ill or have a disability that affects your ability to work.