THOUSANDS on PIP will have received £10 from the Department for Work and Pensions, but what is it?
The payment is known as the Christmas bonus and is handed out to people on any one of 20 benefits.
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The cash boost is made up of a one-off tax-free £10 payment which doesn’t have to be paid back.
The payments are usually made during the qualifying week at the beginning of December each year.
This year, that’s December 4-11, according to the DWP.
Eligible households don’t need to apply for the bonus as it is paid automatically – but you do have to meet eligibility criteria.
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Conditions for getting the £10 include being present or ordinarily a resident in Britain, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the week between December 4 and 11.
Households also need to have claimed at least one of 20 qualifying benefits within the same period.
The bonus won’t have been paid to someone on Universal Credit only but someone on Universal Credit who also receives one of the qualifying benefits will get it.
Which benefits make you eligible for the Christmas bonus?
The following 20 benefits make you eligible for the tax-free £10 Christmas bonus payment.
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- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Attendance Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Child Disability Payment
- Constant Attendance Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (once the main phase of the benefit is entered after the first 13 weeks of claim)
- Disability Living Allowance
- Incapacity Benefit at the long-term rate
- Industrial Death Benefit (for widows or widowers)
- Mobility Supplement
- Pension Credit – the guarantee element
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
- Severe Disablement Allowance (transitionally protected)
- Unemployability Supplement or Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- War Disablement Pension at State Pension age
- War Widow’s Pension
- Widowed Mother’s Allowance
- Widowed Parent’s Allowance
- Widow’s Pension
If you’re part of a married couple, in a civil partnership or live together, you should both have received the bonus.
If you or your partner do not get one of the above qualifying benefits, then you should have received the bonus if you were over the state pension age by the end of the qualifying week.
How do I claim the Christmas bonus?
You don’t have to claim the Christmas bonus if you’re eligible.
If you’re getting any of the benefits above, it should have been paid to you automatically.
It will have been paid into the same account where you normally receive your benefit payments.
It should have shown up as “DWP XB” on your bank statement.
If you think that you qualify but didn’t receive the payment automatically, contact your local Jobcentre Plus or Pension Centre.
