There are a number of reasons your Universal Credit payments may be affected.
If you get tax credits and have received a Migration Notice letter, and you have more than £16,000 of capital or savings, you will be eligible for Universal Credit for a maximum 12 assessment periods.
Savings, assets and investments
Any income from savings, assets and investments (for example, interest on savings, rent you receive from properties you own or dividends from shares) is considered to be ‘capital’.
Capital with a value of £6,001 to £16,000 will affect your Universal Credit. For each £250 above £6,000, your Universal Credit is reduced by £4.35 a month. If it is not a complete £250, it is rounded up to the next £250.
For example: If you have capital of £6,300, your Universal Credit will be reduced by £8.70 a month until the value of your capital is £6,300 or less.
When your capital is £6,250 or less, your Universal Credit will be reduced by £4.35 a month until the value of your capital is £6,000 or less. Once your capital is £6,000 or less, your Universal Credit will no longer be reduced.
If you have capital valued at £16,000 or more, you are not entitled to Universal Credit.
‘Capital disregards’ are amounts of capital that are not taken into account when deciding how much Universal Credit you can get. Capital disregards include:
- assets of a business that is trading
- premises or land you live in
- occupational and personal pensions
This is not a complete list. For more information, speak to your work coach.
Unearned income
Regular income other than earnings (including some benefits) will usually be treated as unearned income when working out your Universal Credit payments. This means that you will get less Universal Credit.
Unearned income includes:
- pension payment
- student income
- employment and training payments paid as a substitute for Universal Credit or for living expenses
This is not a complete list. For more information, speak to your work coach.
Deductions
You may get less Universal Credit if you:
- have had a Universal Credit advance
- have had a Hardship Payment
- have had a Fraud Penalty
- have had a Sanction
- owe money to third party suppliers (for example, gas and electricity companies
- have benefit debt or have received benefit overpayments
- have received Tax Credit overpayments
You can find information on when moneycan be taken from your Universal Credit payments, and who to contact if you have any questions.
Benefits that can affect your Universal Credit payment
You can get Universal Credit at the same time as other benefits. Your Universal Credit payments will be reduced by the amount of the payments you get for:
- Armed Forces Pensions
- Carer’s Allowance
- Carer Support Payment (Scotland)
- Incapacity Benefit
- Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (excluding any increases where constant attendance is needed and for exceptionally severe disablement)
- Maternity Allowance
- New Style Employment and Support Allowance
- New Style Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Severe Disablement Allowance
- State Pension
- Widowed Mother’s Allowance
- Widowed Parent’s Allowance
Sanctions
Your Universal Credit payment may be reduced if you do not meet the responsibilities set out in your Commitmentand you cannot give a good reason to explain why. This is known as a Sanction.
With a Sanction, you will be told how much of your Universal Credit payment you will lose and for how long.
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