Housing Benefit cap

Cap on total amount

The total amount of household benefits that working age claimants can get is now capped. The cap is set at the level of the average take home pay.

Find benefit cap guidance on the UK Government website. There is a cap calculator on the website.

The new cap rates from 7 November 2016 are

£384.62 per week (£20,000 a year) if you're in a couple, where your children live with you or not
£384.62 per week (£20,000 a year) if you're single and your children live with you
£257.69 per week (£13,400 a year) if you're single and you don't have children, or your children don't live with you.

The cap will not normally apply to people of Pension Credit age. The cap will not apply if the claimant or partner is entitled to Working Tax Credit.

The benefit cap won't apply if you, your partner or any children living with you can get any of the following benefits

Working Tax Credit
Attendance Allowance
Carers Allowance
Disability Living Allowance
Guardian's Allowance
Industrial Injuries Benefits and the equivalent payments as part of a war disablement pension or the Armed Forces Compensation scheme
Personal Independence Payment
the support group amount of Employment and Support Allowance
War Widow's or War Widower's pension
War pensions
Armed Forces Compensation scheme
Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP)

The cap will be delayed for 39 weeks where the claimant or partner has worked for 50 weeks or more in the last 52 weeks.

The cap will apply to all income from

Bereavement Allowance
Child Benefit
Child Tax Credit
Employment and Support Allowance except where it is paid with the support group amount
Housing Benefit or Universal Credit Housing Costs, paid direct to you or to your landlord.
Incapacity Benefit
Income Support
Jobseeker's Allowance
Maternity Allowance
Severe Disablement Allowance
Universal Credit
Widowed Parent's Allowance
Widowed Mother's Allowance
Widow's Pension, including the age related
Component.