Benefit Cap

From April 2013, the UK government introduced a cap on the total amount of benefit that working age people (16-64 years old) can receive.

This means that your main out-of-work benefits such as Employment Support Allowance, Job Seekers Allowance, Income Support, Housing Benefit, Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit and a number of other benefits, will not be more than

£423.46 a week if you are a couple or have children  or
£283.71 a week if you are a single person

The cap will not affect a claimant if they, or their partner, receive working tax credit. The cap is most likely to affect you if you get a number of benefits and live in accommodation that has a high rent. The cap will not affect households that include anyone who receives certain disability benefits. There are other exemptions from the Benefit CAP

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will be writing to those people who will be affected by this change. If you are worried about this, speak to the council's Welfare Rights service , the CONNECT team or the Citizens' Advice Bureau.

What can you do?

If you receive a letter from the DWP, or you want to report a change, it is worth asking the council's Welfare Rights section or the Citizens Advice Bureau to double-check your benefits, especially if you or any of your children have disabilities (the new cap may not apply if anyone living in your household is claiming certain disability benefits).

Speak to the council about discretionary housing payments.

Finding work and qualifying for Working Tax Credit may be the best way to ensure that the Benefit Cap doesn't apply.

Jobcentre Plus are offering employment support to all those potentially affected.

Dundee City Jobcentre Plus Advisers provide personalised advice to help customers understand what the Benefit Cap might mean for them and encourage and assist them to move into suitable and sustainable employment.

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