Benefit cap
Benefits for working-age households are now capped.
From 7 November 2016 the amount of benefits you can receive is limited to:
- £384.61 a week for couples (with or without children living with them)
- £384.61 a week for single parents whose children live with them
- £257.69 a week for single adults who do not have children, or whose children do not live with them
Depending on individual or household circumstances you may be exempt from the benefit cap.
There is also a 'grace' period of 9 months where you will not be capped if you (or your partner) have been doing paid work (employed or self-employed) for a period of 50 weeks out of the previous 52 weeks. During these 50 weeks you must not have been in receipt of Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseekers Allowance or Income Support.
You will be notified by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) if you are affected by the benefit cap. If you are affected then your housing benefit payment or Universal Credit award will be reduced.
For more information visit the UK Government’s Benefit Cap page to see which benefits are included and which benefits can exclude you from the benefit cap.
You can also contact our welfare rights service for free, confidential advice. They will undertake an income maximisation check to ensure you are receiving your correct entitlements. They can also provide advice on claiming a Discretionary Housing Payment. Our skills team can offer you free advice about moving into work, training or education.
Bedroom tax
The amount of housing benefit (or housing cost element of Universal Credit) you receive may be reduced if you are:
- under state pension age and
- rent from the council or a housing association and
- have one or more extra bedrooms and your home is assessed as under-occupied.
A home is classed as under-occupied if you have more bedrooms than the government say you require.
The government rules allow one bedroom for:
- each adult couple (married and unmarried)
- any other person aged 16 or over
- two children of the same sex under the age of 16
- two children under 10 regardless of their sex
- any other child
- a foster child
- adult children who serve in the armed forces who continue to live with their parents
- a disabled child or disabled non-dependant adult who requires and receives overnight care from a non-resident carer (or group of carers)
- a couple who are unable to share a bedroom because of their disabilities
You will not be assessed as requiring an extra bedroom if:
- your child/children's main home is at another address.
Where under-occupancy arises due to a death in the household, no reduction will be applied for one year where a member of the household is in receipt of housing benefit. For Universal Credit households there will be no reduction for a maximum of three assessment periods following a death in the household.
If you are assessed as having an extra bedroom, there will be a reduction in your housing benefit (or housing cost element of Universal Credit) by:
- 14% for under-occupancy by one bedroom
- 25% for under-occupancy by two bedrooms or more.
If your housing benefit (or housing cost element of Universal Credit) is reduced because of the bedroom tax rules you should apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment. The Scottish Government have made funds available to local authorities to fully mitigate the bedroom tax.
If you require further advice in relation to the bedroom tax or other benefits then please contact our welfare rights service.