BIG changes to people’s benefits start next month as more than a million Brits will be shifted onto Universal Credit.
The Government has been slowly transferring claimants from old-style benefits to UC – but the migration was paused during the pandemic.
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The government has confirmed it’s restarting in May however, with an initial push that will affect around 500 people.
They’ll be brought into the “mandatory migration” process, revealed Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Thérèse Coffey in a statement today.
And the aim is to have everyone on the new UC system by the end of 2024.
Around 2.6 million households currently receive legacy benefits and tax credits who need to move across to UC.
UC is a monthly payment for struggling Brits that streamlines old-style benefits like child tax credits, housing benefit and income support into one package.
Downing Street insists the benefits payment is far more generous than old-style options.
The reinstated movement across to the benefit will carry on as it did before, but Coffey explained amendments could be on the way for the Transitional Provisions Regulations.
She also revealed that the government would be taking advantage of the recent reduction in the taper rate and boost to work allowances with the government’s “levelling up agenda”.
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What are legacy benefits and when will I move to Universal Credit?
Universal Credit is replacing six benefits under the old welfare system, commonly called legacy benefits. They are:
- Working Tax Credit
- Child Tax Credit
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Income Support
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Housing Benefit.
If you’re on any of these benefits now, you can chose to move over – but you might not be better off.
You should consider carefully what moving over means for your money, as you can’t move back once you’re on Universal Credit.
Using an online benefits calculator can help you compare and are free and easy to use from charities such as Turn2Us and EntitledTo, and it’s also worth asking them for advice.
You may be moved over to Universal Credit if you have a change in circumstances, like moving home, a change in working hours or a have a baby.
But eventually everyone will be moved over to Universal Credit. This is known as “managed migration” and plans for this were paused due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The process starts again soon and the government has a goal date of moving everyone over to Universal Credit by 2024.
Other recent changes saw UC payments shoot up by 3.1 % thanks to annual rises in benefit rates.
The hike is so benefits payments do not become less valuable as prices in shops increase, although this year inflation has soared by more than 5%.
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