Universal Credit

The Borough of Walsall is a full service Universal Credit area.

Move to Universal Credit (UC)

Some benefits and tax credits are ending. Universal Credit is replacing:

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

What you need to do

Look out for a letter called a Universal Credit Migration Notice from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). This explains what you’ll need to do and when. You don't need to take any action until you receive your notice letter. 

Make sure you claim UC by the deadline in your notice letter. If you don’t, you could lose out on an extra amount (transactional protection) of your entitlement.

The Move to Universal Credit website explains: 

• what you need to do
• what support and advice you can get

Eligibility

You may be able to get Universal Credit if:

• you’re on a low income or out of work
• you’re 18 or over (there are some exceptions if you’re 16 to 17)
• you’re under State Pension age (or your partner is)
• you and your partner have £16,000 or less in savings between you
• you live in the UK

The number of children you have and whether you're part of a couple make a difference to your claim. You can find out more about eligibility on the government's website.

If you need help with your rent you should apply for Universal Credit, unless you:

• live in specified supported accommodation
• live in temporary homeless accommodation provided by the council
• are of state pension credit age

If you’re in one of these categories, you should claim Housing Benefit instead.

You’ll need to let us know if your circumstances change because it could make a difference to your benefits.

If you make a claim for Universal Credit and would also like to claim a Council Tax Reduction (CTR), please ensure you answer YES when asked if you would like to claim CTR. Failure to do this could impact you financially.

Additional benefits you can claim

Universal Credit does not include help towards your council tax or free school meals, so you'll still need to apply for these separately.

When you reach state pension age, you may be able to claim Pension Credit and Housing Benefit instead of Universal Credit.

Find out more about Universal Credit on the government's website.

How you'll receive your payments

Your Universal Credit payment will go straight into your bank or building society account.

If your payment includes the housing element, you'll be responsible for paying this to your landlord.