The Department for Work and Pensions has confirmed the date people will start receiving the first part of the £900 cost of living payments. Millions of people on means-tested benefits will receive the support in three payments from the Spring.
Now, the DWP has set out the dates when £301 will start landing in bank accounts. In an announcement on its website, it said the first part will be paid between April 25 and May 17, in an effort to help people with rising bills.
To receive the payment, you must claim one of the following means-tested benefits during the qualifying period, The Mirror reports :
Universal Credit
Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
Income Support
Pension Credit
You need to have been entitled to a payment between January 26 and February 25 to receive the £301, or received a payment for an assessment period ending between these dates. Low-income pensioners not already getting Pension Credit can still qualify for the £301 if they backdate a Pension Credit application by May 19.
Those who receive just Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit - so no DWP benefits - are also eligible for the £301. However, HMRC will pay this first instalment at a later date, which has yet to be confirmed.
Dates for the second and third instalment of the £900 cost of living payments - set to be worth £300 and £299 - have also yet to be announced. The second payment is due to be sent in summer 2023, while the third payment will be sent in spring 2024.
All the cost of living payments will be tax-free, will not count towards the benefit cap, and will not have any impact on existing benefit awards.
I’m not entitled to the £900 cost of living payment - what other support is coming?
There will be a disability cost of living payment worth £150 being sent out during summer 2023.
This includes those in receipt of one of the following benefits:
- Disability Living Allowance
- Personal Independence Payment
- Attendance Allowance
- Scottish Disability Benefits
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Constant Attendance Allowance
- War Pension Mobility Supplement
There will also be a £300 pensioner cost of living payment to all eligible households that get a Winter Fuel Payment.
The dates for both the £150 disability and £300 pensioner cost of living payments have not yet been confirmed.
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