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Welfare Benefits Handbook 2025/26
This content was last updated:
01 Dec 2025
Part 3: Other means-tested benefits
Welfare Benefits Handbook 2025/26
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Welfare Benefits Handbook 2025/26
Part 3: Other means-tested benefits
Back to previous
Part 3: Other means-tested benefits
Chapter 9: Income-related employment and support allowance
Key facts
1. Who can get income-related employment and support allowance
Extra rules for income-related employment and support allowance
Disqualification from benefit
2. The rules about your age
3. People included in the award
4. The amount of benefit
Calculating income-related employment and support allowance
Step 1: calculate your applicable amount
Step 2: calculate your income
Step 3: deduct income from applicable amount
5. Work-related requirements
Work-related interviews and activity
Exemptions
Sanctions
6. Special benefit rules
7. Claims and backdating
8. Getting paid
Income-related employment and support allowance run-on
Change of circumstances
9. Tax, other benefits and the benefit cap
Tax
Means-tested benefits
Non-means-tested benefits
The benefit cap
Passports and other sources of help
Financial help on starting work
Chapter 10: Housing benefit
Key facts
1. Who can get housing benefit
Who can make a new claim for housing benefit
Mixed-age couples
Payments that can be met by housing benefit
Payments that cannot be met by housing benefit
Liability to pay rent
People treated as liable to pay rent
People treated as not liable to pay rent
Joint liability
Occupying accommodation as your home
Moving home
Temporary absence from home
Housing benefit for more than one home
Other situations
2. The rules about your age
Working-age or pension-age housing benefit
Mixed-age couples
3. People included in the award
4. The amount of benefit
If you are on a means-tested benefit
If you are not on a means-tested benefit
Maximum housing benefit
Eligible rent
Calculating your weekly eligible rent
If you live in shared accommodation
Ineligible charges
Service charges
Deductions for non-dependants
Who counts as a non-dependant
When a non-dependant deduction is not made
The amount of the deductions
Your non-dependant's income or capital is more than yours
5. Special benefit rules
6. Claims and backdating
Making a claim
If you claim pension credit
Making sure your claim is valid
Amending or withdrawing your claim
Where to claim
Who should claim
Appointees
Information to support your claim
The national insurance number requirement
The date of your claim
Backdating your claim
If you claim the wrong benefit
Claiming in advance
Housing benefit after an award of a qualifying benefit
Notice of the decision
Information a decision notice should contain
When your entitlement starts
7. Getting paid
How your benefit is paid
Payment to someone acting on your behalf
Payment direct to a landlord
Continuing payments
Continuing payments on claiming pension credit
Extended payments of housing benefit
Housing benefit run-on
Delays and complaints
Payments on account
Change of circumstances
How to report a change of circumstances
Changes you must report if you get pension credit
Changes you must report if you do not get pension credit
When changes in circumstances take effect
8. Tax, other benefits and the benefit cap
Tax
Means-tested benefits
Non-means-tested benefits
The benefit cap
Passports and other sources of help
Financial help on starting work
Chapter 11: Pension credit
Key facts
1. Who can get pension credit
Guarantee credit
Savings credit
2. The rules about your age
3. People included in the claim
4. The amount of pension credit
Guarantee credit
Standard minimum guarantee
Additional amounts
When your appropriate minimum guarantee may be reduced
The guarantee credit calculation
Step 1: calculate your appropriate minimum guarantee
Step 2: calculate your income
Step 3: deduct income from appropriate minimum guarantee
Savings credit
5. Special benefit rules
6. Claims and backdating
Making a claim
Who should claim
Information to support your claim
The date of your claim
Backdating your claim
Claiming in advance
Claiming universal credit and reaching pension age
7. Getting paid
Change of circumstances
When your pension credit is adjusted
Assessed income period
8. Tax, other benefits and the benefit cap
Tax
Means-tested benefits
Non-means-tested benefits
The benefit cap
Passports and other sources of help
Chapter 12: People included in your means-tested benefits
Key facts
1. Couples
Spouse or civil partner
Living together as a married couple or civil partners
Living in the same household
Being in a sexual relationship
Your financial arrangements
A stable relationship
Children
Your appearance in public
Couples living apart
Challenging a decision that you are a couple
2. Children
Who counts as a child
Who does not count as a child
Responsibility for a child
Living in the same household
When a child does not count as a member of your household
3. Households
Chapter 13: Applicable amounts
Key facts
1. What are applicable amounts
What is included in your applicable amount
2. Personal allowances
Rates of personal allowances for people aged 18 or over
Rates of personal allowances for 16/17-year-olds
Young couples in special circumstances
Personal allowances for children
The two-child limit
Rate of personal allowance for children
3. Premiums and additional amounts
Premiums and additional amounts for children
Family premium
Disabled child premium
If your child dies
Disability premium
If you undertake training
Exclusions
Enhanced disability premium
Pensioner premiums
Severe disability premium and severe disability addition
Couples
Who is not a non-dependant
Carer premium and carer addition
Payment and rates of premiums
Backdating premiums
If you are already getting benefit
If you were refused benefit or lost entitlement
4. Components
Support component
Work-related activity component
Rates of components
Backdating components
Chapter 14: Help with ground rent, service charges and other housing costs
Key facts
1. Who can get help with housing costs
2. Which housing costs can be met
Deductions for fuel charges
Service charges
Excluded repairs and improvements
3. The amount of housing costs
Deductions for non-dependants
People who are not non-dependants
When a deduction is not made
The amount of the deduction
4. Liability to pay housing costs
Shared liability
5. Occupying accommodation as your home
Moving home
Temporary absence from home
Housing costs for up to 52 weeks
Housing costs for more than one home
6. Housing costs run-on
Who can get housing costs run-on
The amount of housing costs run-on
Chapter 15: Housing benefit rent restrictions
Key facts
1. How to use this chapter
Which rent restriction rules apply
If you are a private tenant
If you are a housing association tenant
If you are a local authority tenant
When your tenancy is excluded
If none of the rent restriction rules apply
2. The local housing allowance rules
How your rent is restricted
Which local housing allowance applies
The number of bedrooms you are allowed
Categories of dwelling
Local housing allowance rates
How long the restriction applies
If you are considering renting accommodation
3. The social sector rules: the 'bedroom tax'
When the social sector rules do not apply
Sanctuary schemes
How your rent is restricted
If you are a sole tenant or a joint tenant with your partner only
If you are a joint tenant
The number of bedrooms you are allowed
4. Hostels, houseboats, mobile homes, caravans and boarders
How your rent is restricted
When the local authority must apply to the rent officer
The rent officer's determinations about your rent
The claim-related rent
The local reference rent and single room rent
Service charges
How long the restriction applies
If you are considering renting accommodation
5. Exempt accommodation and claimants: the old scheme rules
How your rent is restricted
Is your accommodation unreasonably large?
Is your rent unreasonably high?
Suitable alternative accommodation
Are you in a protected group?
Exempt accommodation
Exempt claimants: getting housing benefit since 1 January 1996
If you are a local authority or housing association tenant
If your rent increases
6. Common rules
Young individuals
Occupiers
Additional bedrooms
What counts as a bedroom
Couples who cannot share a bedroom
Child who cannot share a bedroom
Person who requires overnight care
Qualifying parent or carer
7. Delaying a rent restriction
8. Challenging a rent restriction
Chapter 16: Income: under pension age
Key facts
1. Whose income counts
2. What counts as income
Income or capital
3. Earnings
Employed earnings
What counts as earnings
What does not count as earnings
Calculating net earnings from employment
Payments when you stop work
Self-employed earnings
Calculating net earnings
Working out average earnings from self-employment
Childminders
Disregarded earnings
Disregards for income-related employment and support allowance
Disregards for housing benefit
Permitted work disregard for housing benefit
Additional disregard for housing benefit
Childcare costs disregard for housing benefit
4. Other income
Benefits
Benefits that are taken into account
Benefits that are not taken into account
Benefits that are partly taken into account
Benefit delays
Benefit deductions and overpayments
Maintenance payments
Other kinds of maintenance
If you pay maintenance
Student loans and grants
Adoption, fostering and similar payments
Charitable, voluntary and personal injury payments
Income from tenants and lodgers
Lettings without board
Boarders
Tenants in other properties
Income from capital
Tariff income from capital
Capital that counts as income
Income tax refunds
Income from employment and training programmes
Occupational and personal pensions and annuities
Mortgage and insurance payments
Social services, community care and other payments
Miscellaneous income
5. Notional income
Deliberately getting rid of income
Failing to apply for income
Income due to you that has not been paid
Unpaid wages
Income paid to someone else on your behalf
Income paid to you for someone else
Cheap or unpaid labour
6. Working out weekly income
Income-related employment and support allowance
Period covered by a payment
Date from when a payment counts
Converting income into a weekly amount
Housing benefit
Averaging earnings
Date from when a payment counts
Chapter 17: Income: over pension age
Key facts
1. Whose income counts
2. What counts as income
Pension credit
Housing benefit
If you get pension credit guarantee credit
If you get pension credit savings credit
If you do not get pension credit
Net weekly income
3. Earnings
Employed earnings
What counts as earnings
What does not count as earnings
Calculating net earnings from employment
Payments when you stop work
Self-employed earnings
Calculating net earnings
Working out average earnings from self-employment
Childminders
Disregarded earnings
Pension credit
Housing benefit
4. Other income
Benefits
Benefits that are taken into account
Benefits that are not taken into account
Benefits that are partly taken into account
Benefit delays
Benefit deductions and overpayments
Maintenance payments
Income from tenants and lodgers
Lettings without board
Boarders
Tenants in other properties
Income from capital
Deemed income from capital
Occupational and personal pensions
Occupational and personal pension options
Specified miscellaneous income
Other income
5. Notional income
Deliberately getting rid of income
Failing to apply for pension income
Deferring a state pension
Leaving funds in an occupational or personal pension
Income paid to someone else on your behalf
6. Working out weekly income
Averaging income
Converting income into a weekly amount
Date from when a payment counts
Chapter 18: Capital: under pension age
Key facts
1. The capital limits
Care homes
2. Whose capital counts
3. What counts as capital
Savings
Fixed-term investments
Property and land
Loans and ownership of capital
Trusts
Money held by your solicitor
Income treated as capital
4. Disregarded capital
Your home
When the value of the property is disregarded
The home of a partner, former partner or relative
Personal possessions
Business assets
Running your business as a sole trader, partner or limited company
Personal pension schemes
Insurance policy and annuity surrender values
Future interest in property
The right to receive a payment in the future
Benefits
Arrears of benefits and tax credits
Other benefits and payments
Charitable, personal injury and other compensation payments
Social services, community care and other payments
Employment and training programme payments
Miscellaneous payments
5. Notional capital
Deliberately getting rid of capital
Your intentions
Paying off debts and bankruptcy
How notional capital is calculated
The diminishing notional capital rule
Failing to apply for capital
Capital payments made to a third party on your behalf
Capital payments made to you for a third party
6. How capital is valued
Market value
Expenses of sale
Debts
Jointly owned capital
Treatment of assets after a relationship breakdown
Shares
Unit trusts
The right to receive a payment in the future
Overseas assets
Chapter 19: Capital: over pension age
Key facts
1. The capital limits
Pension credit
Housing benefit
2. Whose capital counts
3. What counts as capital
Savings
Fixed-term investments
Property and land
Loans
Trusts
Money held by your solicitor
4. Disregarded capital
Your home
When the value of the property is disregarded
The home of a former partner or relative
Personal possessions
Business assets
Insurance policy and annuity surrender values
Future interests in property
The right to receive a payment in the future
Benefits
Arrears of benefits
Other benefits and payments
Personal injury and other compensation payments
Funeral plan payments
Social services, community care and other payments
5. Deliberately getting rid of capital
The diminishing notional capital rule
6. How capital is valued
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CPAG. "Part 3: Other means-tested benefits." In
Welfare Benefits Handbook 2025/26.
, 2025. Accessed March 10, 2026.
CPAG,
https://askcpag.org.uk/?id=-264031CITANCHOR.
CPAG. "Part 3: Other means-tested benefits." In
Welfare Benefits Handbook 2025/26.
, 2025. Accessed March 10, 2026. https://askcpag.org.uk/?id=-264031CITANCHOR.
Contributor(s):
CPAG
Title:
Welfare Benefits Handbook 2025/26
Site name:
CPAG
Publisher:
Publication date:
March 21, 2025
Date accessed:
March 10, 2026
URL:
https://askcpag.org.uk/?id=-264031CITANCHOR
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