Cost of Living Payments 2023 to 2024Payment

These payments are not taxable and will not affect the benefits or tax credits you get.

Low income benefits and tax credits Cost of Living Payment

You may beget entitleda topayment upof to£650 3paid Costin of2 Livinglump Paymentssums of £301,£326 £300 and £299£324 if you get payments of any of the following benefits or tax credits on certain dates:following:

• Universal Credit
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Universal Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit

The payment will be made separately from your benefit payments.benefit.

If you have a joint claim onwith thea qualifyingpartner, dates,you awill singleget one payment of £301,£326 £300 and £299one will be sent using the same payment methodof used£324 betweenfor theseyour dates,joint claim, if you’re eligible.entitled.

£301Universal Credit

You were eligible for the first Cost of Living Payment eligibility

of £326 if you were entitled to a payment (or later found to be entitled to a payment) of Universal Credit

for an assessment period that ended in the period 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022.

You arewill be eligible for the firstsecond Cost of Living Payment of £301£324 if you were entitled to a payment (or later found to be entitled to a payment) of Universal Credit for an assessment period that ended in the period 26 JanuaryAugust 20232022 to 25 FebruarySeptember 2023.2022.

The payment will be made separately from your benefit.

Income-based Universal Credit ‘nil awards’

You will not be eligible for the Cost of Living Payment if your Universal Credit is reduced to £0 for the qualifying assessment period. This is sometimes called a ‘nil award’. Reasons your Universal Credit may be reduced to £0 for an assessment period include getting more than one payment of earnings, your or your partner’s earnings go up, your or your partner’s savings go up, you start getting another benefit.

If money has also been taken off for other reasons (such as payments of rent to your landlord or for money that you owe), you might still be eligible.

Income-based JSA, income-based income-based ESA, Income Support and Pension Credit

You arewere eligible for the first Cost of Living Payment of £301£326 if you were entitled to a payment (or later found to be entitled to a payment) of income-based income-based JSA, income-related income-related ESA, Income Support or Pension Credit for any day in the period 26 JanuaryApril 20232022 to 25 FebruaryMay 2023.2022.

You arewill alsobe eligible for the second Cost of Living Payment of £324 if you arewere entitled to onea payment (or later found to be entitled to a payment) of theseincome-based benefitsJSA, income-related ESA, Income Support or Pension Credit for any day duringin thisthe period 26 butAugust you2022 doto not25 receiveSeptember a2022.

The benefit payment becausewill yourbe entitlementmade isseparately betweenfrom 1your penny and 9 pence.benefit.

Tax credits

You arewere eligible for the first Cost of Living Payment of £301£326 if you receivedreceived, aor paymentlater ofreceive, tax credits for any day in the period 26 JanuaryApril 20232022 to 25 FebruaryMay 2023,2022 or you are later found to have been entitled to either:

• a payment for this period.

  £300 and £299 Cost of Livingtax Payments

  Thiscredits guidancefor will be updated with the qualifyingtax datesyear for2022 theto £3002023

• an andannual £299award Cost of Livingat Paymentsleast when£26 theyof havetax beencredits announced.

  Whenfor youthe willtax notyear be2022 eligible:to ‘Nil awards’

  2023

You will not be eligible for the second Cost of Living Payment ifof your£324 benefitif isyou reducedreceived, toor £0later receive, for any day in the qualifyingperiod period.26 ThisAugust is2022 sometimesto called25 aSeptember ‘nil2022 award’.either:

Reasons

• a yourpayment benefitof maytax becredits reducedfor tothe £0tax include:
  • youyear got2022 moreto than2023
  • an oneannual paymentaward of earningsat inleast your£26 Universalof Credittax assessmentcredits period
  • yourfor orthe yourtax partner’syear earnings2022 wentto up2023
  • your

  If oryou yourget partner’sboth savingsChild wentTax up

• youCredit startedand gettingWorking anotherTax benefit
• Credit, you gotwill receive a ‘sanction’Cost becauseof youLiving didPayment notfor doChild somethingTax youCredit agreedonly, inwhich yourwill claimantbe commitment

paid by HMRC.

YouIf mayyou stillget betax eligiblecredits forfrom HMRC and a low income benefit from DWP, you will get a Cost of Living Payment iffrom DWP only.

When youryou’ll benefitbe ispaid

money

Benefit reducedor totax £0credits	Cost andof oneLiving ofPayment	When theyou’ll followingbe applies: paid
Universal wasCredit	£326	Between taken14 offand your31 benefitJuly 2022 for othermost reasons,people
	£324	Between such8 asand payments23 ofNovember rent2022 tofor yourmost landlordpeople
Income-based JSA	£326	Between or14 forand money31 thatJuly you2022 owe youfor hadmost apeople
	£324	Between hardship8 paymentand because23 youNovember got2022 afor sanctionmost people
Income-related ESA	£326	Between 14 and could31 notJuly pay2022 for rent,most heating,people
	£324	Between food8 orand hygiene23 needs WhenNovember you’ll2022 befor paid Ifmost you’repeople
Income entitled,Support	£326	Between you14 willand get: £30131 paidJuly between2022 25for Aprilmost 2023people
	£324	Between 8 and 1723 MayNovember 20232022 for most people
Pension onCredit	£326	Between DWP14 benefits £301 paid between 2 and 931 MayJuly 20232022 for most people
	£324	Between on8 taxand credits23 andNovember no2022 otherfor lowmost incomepeople
Tax benefits £300Credits	£326	Between paid2 duringand autumn7 2023September 2022 for most people £299
	£324	Between paid23 duringand spring30 2024November 2022 for most people

If you’reyou gettinghad botha Childjoint Taxclaim Creditbetween and26 WorkingApril Taxand Credit,25 youMay will2022, receive a Costsingle payment of Living£326 Paymentwill forbe Childsent Taxusing Creditthe only,same whichpayment willmethod beused paidbetween bythese HMRC.dates, if you’re eligible.

If you’reyou gettinghad tax credits from HMRC and a lowjoint incomeclaim benefitbetween from26 DWP,August youand cannot25 getSeptember 2022, a Costsingle payment of Living£324 Paymentwill frombe bothsent HMRCusing andthe DWP.same Youpayment willmethod usuallyused bebetween paidthese bydates, DWPif only.you’re eligible.

Your payment might come later, for example if you’reyou are awarded a qualifying benefit at a later date or you change the account your benefit or tax credits are paid into. You will still be paid the Cost of Living Payment automatically.automatically and do not need to contact DWP or HMRC.

If you have received a Cost of Living Payment, but we later find that you were not eligible for it, you may have to pay it back.

ThisDWP guidanceand willHMRC beare updatedusing a computer program to identify those eligible to receive a Cost of Living Payment. If you are not content with this you can contact the paymentoffice datesthat beforepays eachyour paymentbenefit starts.or tax credits to discuss it.

Disability Cost of Living Payment

You may beget entitled to a Disabilitylump Costsum ofpayment Living Payment of £150 if youyou’re getgetting any of the following benefits on a certain date:following:

• Attendance Allowance
• Constant Attendance Allowance
• Disability Living Allowance for adults
• Disability Living Allowance for children
• Personal Independence Payment
• Adult Disability Payment (in Scotland)
• Child Disability Payment (in Scotland)
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• War Pension Mobility Supplement

Eligibility

ThisYou guidancemust willhave bereceived updateda withpayment the(or later receive a payment) of one of these qualifying datebenefits for the25 paymentMay when2022 itto hasget beenthe announced.payment.

If you wereget getting a qualifying disability benefit from the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and a qualifying disability benefit from DWP, you will get a Disability Cost of Living Payment from DWP only.

If you receive a Disability Cost of Living Payment, but we later find that you were not eligible for it, you may have to pay it back.

When you’ll beget paid

MostYou’ll people will be paid the £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment duringautomatically summerfrom 2023.

This20 guidanceSeptember will2022. beMost updatedpeople withwill thereceive their payment datesby before the paymentsbeginning start.of October 2022.

Payments will be made to people who wereget getting a qualifying disability from DWP before payments to people who wereget getting a qualifying benefit from the Ministry of Defence.

Your

Report paymenta mightmissing comeCost later,of forLiving examplePayment

You ifcan you’rereport awarded a qualifyingmissing benefitCost atof aLiving laterPayment dateif oryou think you changeshould thehave accounthad yourone benefitof orthe taxfollowing creditspayments arebut paidyou into.cannot Yousee willit stillin beyour paidbank, thebuilding Costsociety ofor Livingcredit Paymentunion automatically.account:

Pensioner

• £326 or £324 Cost of Living Payment

If you’refor entitleda tolow aincome Winterbenefit

£150 FuelDisability PaymentCost forof winterLiving 2023Payment

The full amountReport ofa Wintermissing FuelCost Paymentof (includingLiving thePayment

Pensioner Cost of Living Payment) you will get for winter 2023 to 2024 depends on when you were born and your circumstances during the qualifying dates.

Payment

YouIf canyou’re getentitled to a Winter Fuel Payment for winter 20232022 to 20242023, if you werewill bornget beforean 25extra September£150 1957.

Thisor £300 guidancepaid will be updated with theyour qualifyingnormal dates for the payment whenfrom theyNovember are2022. published.

YouThis willis be sent a letter in Octoberaddition orto Novemberany tellingCost youof howLiving much Winter Fuel Payment you’llyou get ifwith you’reyour eligible.

2022benefit Costor oftax Living Payments

credits.

ThisThe guidancefull isamount about Cost of LivingWinter PaymentsFuel beingPayment madeyou inwill 2023get andfor 2024.winter You2022 canto read2023 aboutdepends theon Costyour of Living Payments in 2022 in separate guidance.circumstances.

Other help

Find out what other other benefits and financial support you might be able to get to help with your living costs.

Use an independent independent benefits calculator to to find out what benefits you could get.

You may be able to get other kinds of support, including:

• help from the Household Support Fund from from your local council in in England
• the the Discretionary Assistance Fund in in Wales
• a a Crisis Grant or Community Care Grant in in Scotland
• Discretionary Support or a Short-term Benefit Advance in in Northern Ireland