The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has clarified the rules around eligibility for means-tested cost of living payments made during 2022. And, as new guidance on the dedicated page on 2023 for the 2023/24 payments contains similar criteria, especially around exemptions, it could be useful for people trying to work out if they will be due the first part of the £900 payments, which is worth £301.
It’s important to stress that no qualifying period or exact payment dates have been announced. All we know for sure is that the £301 will land automatically in over eight million bank accounts sometime this Spring and that the payment window will be confirmed once the final date of the qualifying period has passed.
Labour MP Seema Malhotra asked DWP whether it would consider “upgrading its systems to ensure that individuals with a nil payment in a qualifying month receive any cost of living payments”.
In a written response, Minister for Social Mobility, Youth and Progression, Mims Davies MP explained that “keeping the rules” simple enabled the UK government to make over 30million separate cost of living payments last year - independent of scheduled, regular benefit payments.
Ms Davies also highlighted how an award for at least one penny of means-tested benefits, such as Universal Credit or Pension Credit, were enough to qualify for the £650 payment last year. According to guidance on GOV.UK, this will be the same rules for the 2023/24 payments.
She said: “Keeping the rules for this policy simple enabled the government to make over 30 million separate payments to support with the cost of living while maintaining core benefit delivery in 2022. This includes the clear rule that you must be entitled to at least 1p of a qualifying social security benefit with respect to the qualifying period to receive a Cost of Living Payment.”
She further explained: “Including those on the benefits system, but not in payment of a qualifying benefit, would involve making payments to individuals who were ineligible during the qualifying period.”
And the minister directed Ms Malhotra to the UK Government’s published impact analysis released alongside the Social Security (Additional Payments) (No.2) Bill, which showed that 85 per cent of those who received no Universal Credit award during the qualifying period for the first 2022 Cost of Living Payment of £326, had no award solely due to earnings.
The report also shows that of those with a nil award due to earnings, most had no Universal Credit award for six assessment periods following the qualifying period solely due to earnings or left Universal Credit altogether.
Ms Davies added: “Paying those with financial resources available, which would make them ineligible for means-tested benefits, is not the intention of the Cost of Living Payments which are aimed at those on the lowest incomes.”
The DWP Minister continued: “Including those who received no payment of benefit would also involve making Cost of Living Payments to customers who had the payment of their benefit suspended during the qualifying period including those with suspected fraud or where there is a safeguarding risk related to a vulnerable claimant’s appointee.
“The department has therefore made no such assessment of costs of upgrading its system to include individuals with a nil payment during a qualifying period.”
The 2023/24 Cost of Living Payments are being delivered in three payments over the financial year to reduce the chance of someone missing out completely.
£900 means-tested cost of living payment
- £301 - first payment to be made during Spring 2023
- £300 – second payment to be made during Autumn 2023
- £299 - third payment to be made during Spring 2024
This will be paid to eligible households receiving the following benefits:
- Universal Credit
- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Income Support
- Pension Credit
- Working Tax Credit - paid by HMRC if no other DWP means-tested benefit is also claimed
- Child Tax Credit - paid by HMRC if no other DWP means-tested benefit is also claimed
This payment will be tax-free, will not count towards the benefit cap, and will not have any impact on existing benefit awards.
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