Benefits Eligibility Checker

The short answer

• Working-age households on a low income claim Universal Credit; pensioners claim Pension Credit.
• Both open the door to more help: Council Tax Reduction, the £150 Warm Home Discount, free prescriptions and more.
• Child Benefit, PIP, Attendance Allowance and Carer’s Allowance are not affected by savings.
• The checker is a first look. Use the linked calculator for each benefit before you claim.

How the checker works

You answer a short list of questions: who lives with you, your home, your income and savings, and whether health or caring affects you. The checker then works out:

• Universal Credit with the same engine as our Universal Credit calculator, or Pension Credit with the Pension Credit calculator’s;
• Child Benefit, Healthy Start and the Sure Start Maternity Grant from their 2026/27 rates;
• which other help depends on an assessment or details it has not asked, such as PIP, Carer’s Allowance and New Style JSA.

It assumes your rent is within the Local Housing Allowance for your area. If it is higher, Universal Credit covers less; check with the Local Housing Allowance calculator.

Means-tested and non-means-tested help

Many people assume that owning a home, having some savings or working rules them out. Often it does not: Universal Credit can be paid to working households, Pension Credit ignores the first £10,000 of savings, and the non-means-tested benefits ignore savings altogether.

Help for working-age households

• Universal Credit combines a standard allowance with extra for children, rent, disability, caring and childcare, then reduces by 55p for every pound of take-home pay above any work allowance. Savings over £16,000 rule it out.
• New Style JSA and ESA pay a flat amount based on your National Insurance record, whatever your savings.
• Council Tax Reduction comes from your council and can cut your bill substantially.

Help at State Pension age

• Pension Credit tops weekly income up to £238.00 for a single person or £363.25 for a couple in 2026/27. Even a small award unlocks maximum Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction and a free TV licence for over-75s.
• Housing Benefit is still how pensioners get help with rent.
• Winter Fuel Payment of £200, or £300 at 80 or over, is paid automatically; it is taken back through tax if your income is over £35,000.
• Attendance Allowance helps with care needs, whatever your income.

Help for families

• Child Benefit: £27.05 a week for the first child and £17.90 for each other child. If the highest earner has income over £60,000, some is taken back.
• Universal Credit child element: for every child since the two-child limit ended in April 2026.
• Funded childcare hours in England from 9 months for working parents, and 15 hours for every 3 and 4-year-old.
• Tax-Free Childcare adds £2 for every £8 you pay, up to £2,000 a child a year, if you work and are not on Universal Credit.
• Healthy Start and the Sure Start Maternity Grant for low-income families with a baby or young child.

Help for disability and caring

• PIP (working age): from £30.30 to £194.60 a week, depending on points scored for daily living and mobility.
• Attendance Allowance (pension age): £76.70 or £114.60 a week.
• Carer’s Allowance: £86.45 a week if you care 35 hours or more and earn no more than £204 a week.
• Universal Credit health and carer elements add to the award if you are on Universal Credit.

Worked examples

Why so much goes unclaimed

Government estimates suggest hundreds of thousands of pensioners who could get Pension Credit do not claim it, and many working families miss Universal Credit or Tax-Free Childcare. The common reasons are thinking you earn too much, owning your home, having some savings or not wanting to ask. A ten-minute check can be worth thousands of pounds a year.

Benefits that unlock other help

Getting Universal Credit or Pension Credit often brings other help automatically or on request:

• Council Tax Reduction and the Warm Home Discount;
• free prescriptions, dental treatment and eye tests (with income limits on Universal Credit);
• Healthy Start, free school meals and the Sure Start Maternity Grant;
• social tariffs for broadband and water, and the Household Support Fund from your council;
• cheaper travel and leisure in many areas.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Universal Credit, Pension Credit and Child Benefit are UK-wide. Scotland replaces several benefits with its own: the Scottish Child Payment, Best Start Grants instead of the Sure Start Maternity Grant, Adult Disability Payment instead of PIP, Pension Age Disability Payment instead of Attendance Allowance, and Carer Support Payment. Funded childcare hours differ in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The checker uses the rules for England.

What to do next

1. Open the calculator for each likely benefit to get a fuller estimate.
2. Claim the main benefit first: Universal Credit or Pension Credit.
3. Apply for the others; many need a separate claim.
4. Ask for free advice from Citizens Advice, Turn2us or your council’s welfare rights service if anything is unclear.

Couples and mixed-age couples

Benefits are worked out for the household. If you live with a partner you claim Universal Credit or Pension Credit together, and both your incomes and savings count. Non-means-tested help, such as PIP or Carer’s Allowance, is claimed by the person it is for.

Where one partner has reached State Pension age and the other has not, the couple is a mixed-age couple. Since May 2019 they usually claim Universal Credit, not Pension Credit, until the younger partner reaches State Pension age. Couples already getting Pension Credit or pension-age Housing Benefit before then keep it while they stay entitled. The checker treats you as pension age only if you both are.

When your situation changes

Entitlement can change quickly. Run the checker again, and tell the DWP, HMRC or your council, if:

• you or your partner start or stop work, or your hours or pay change;
• a baby is born, a child leaves school or a child moves in or out;
• you move home, or your rent changes;
• someone becomes ill or disabled, or starts caring for someone;
• you reach State Pension age;
• your savings go above or below £6,000 or £16,000.

Reporting promptly avoids overpayments, which have to be paid back, and makes sure you get any increase from the right date.

Common mistakes

• Assuming a job rules you out. Universal Credit tops up low pay, and many families with two earners still get some.
• Counting your home as savings. The home you live in is ignored for every benefit here.
• Missing Pension Credit. Even a small award is worth claiming for the help it unlocks.
• Not claiming PIP or Attendance Allowance. They are not means-tested, and can increase other benefits.
• Leaving it late. Most benefits are paid from the date you claim, so every week of delay is money lost.

What to have ready

• National Insurance numbers for you and your partner;
• recent payslips, or your business records if self-employed;
• bank statements and details of savings and investments;
• your tenancy agreement and rent, or mortgage details;
• childcare invoices, if you pay for registered childcare.

Beware of benefit scams

You never have to pay anyone to claim a benefit. The DWP, HMRC and councils do not charge for claims or ask for your bank PIN. Be wary of social media posts promising cost of living payments or grants if you click a link, and of anyone offering to make a claim for you in return for a fee or your login details. Claim through GOV.UK, your council, or with help from a free advice service.

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