3. Basic rules

Universal credit (UC) is for people on a low income who are in or out of work. You can claim regardless of your circumstances, provided you meet the basic rules about age, education, residence, income and capital. So, for example, lone parents, people with a disability, carers and unemployed people can all claim UC. If you are a student, you can only get UC if you meet the basic rules and are in one of the groups of students who are eligible for UC.

As well as being a student who is eligible to claim UC, you must satisfy all the following conditions.

•You are aged 18 or over. There are exceptions for some 16/17 year olds – eg, if you are estranged from your parents, are a parent yourself, are sick or disabled or if you are caring for someone with a disability.
•You are under pension age (see here). You are also eligible if you have a partner who is over pension age, provided you are under pension age.
•You are in Great Britain, satisfy the ’habitual residence’ and the ’right to reside’ tests, and are not a ’person subject to immigration control’. These terms are explained in CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook (for subscribers).
•You have no more than £16,000 capital.
•Your income is less than your ’maximum amount’ of UC (see here).
•You have agreed a ’claimant commitment’, setting out what you must do to receive your UC. If you have a partner, you must each agree a claimant commitment to get benefit. You do not have to agree a claimant commitment if you are terminally ill (see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook (for subscribers) for more information).