Important Changes

There are two major changes to the Housing and Council Tax Benefit Regulations from 2nd November 2009. 

One of these is Child Benefit being fully disregared as income in the assement of your Benefit claim. This means that if you have children, and receive Child Benefit in respect of them, you could be entitled to Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit. 

You can use the online benefits calculator to see if you would be entitled.

If you currently have a Benefit claim, this change will be calculated automatically, and you will receive Decision Notices with your new entitlement nearer the time this change comes into force.

The other change is for people who have reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit. The lower capital threshold will increase from £6,000 to £10,000. Previously a tariff  income of £1.00 for each £500 (or part thereof) of capital held over £6,000 was used in the assesment of your claim. From 2nd November 2009 this  threshold limit will change to £10,000. The upper capital limit of £16,000 has not been changed. 

If you are in receipt of Pension Credit, the Pension Service will automatically re-assess your Pension Credit claim, and inform the Local Authority of the outcome. We will then re-assess your claim accordingly. Decision Notices advising you of your new entitlement will be issued when the change is actioned.

If you receive Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit and do not receive Pension Credit, then your claim will be automatically re-assessed, and you will receive Decision Notices advising you of your new entitlement.

If you do not currently claim Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit and think that  you may be entitled, then you can check using the online benefits calculator.

There are several major changes to the Housing and Council Tax Benefit Regulations from October 2008 onwards:-

WITH EFFECT FROM 6^th OCTOBER 2008

Retrospective assessment for Customers aged 60 or over - the maximum period over which a claim may now be retrospectively assessed has been reduced from 52 weeks to 3 months.

Backdated claims for customers aged under 60 - the maximum period over which a claim may now be backdated is reduced from 52 weeks to 6months from the date the request is received. Further changes will be made to reduce this period to a maximum of three months for working age customers, but there has been no timescale published for this further change.

WITH EFFECT FROM 27^th OCTOBER 2008

Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) is being introduced by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) which replaces Incapacity Benefit and Income Support paid on incapacitated grounds, and is paid if a person’s ability to work is limited by ill health or disability.  It also replaces Severe Disability Allowance (SDA).

The intention of ESA is two-fold:-

• People who are able to get back into work will be encouraged to do so and will be required to co-operate with the DWP’s efforts to find them work.

• People with more serious health problems that severely limit their ability to find work, will receive a higher level of benefit more quickly than they would under Incapacity Benefit, and will not be required to co-operate with work related activity.

Unfortunately, for some customers receiving ESA, the claims process for Housing and Council Tax Benefit may prove more complicated. This is due to overlapping benefit rules regarding disability premiums awarded in HB and CTB, which will only now be awarded in certain circumstances.

If a claim is made, or currently being paid with one customer as the claimant, they may receive more HB and/or CTB with their partner as the claimant. Therefore, it is advisable for anyone in receipt of ESA and who has an existing claim, or will be making a new claim, to contact the Benefits Section for advice regarding this issue to maximise their entitlement and ease the claiming process. Please visit the DWP website for more information on ESA  http://www.dwp.gov.uk/esa/

WITH EFFECT FROM 27^th October 2008

New Regulations allow all maintenance paid in respect of a child, to be fully disregarded within the assessment of Housing and Council Tax Benefit claims. This will increase benefit in many cases and all existing claims have been automatically reassessed, and checked for an entitlement for Council Tax Benefit. If you made a claim prior to 27^th October 2008 and did not qualify due to your income being too high, and it included child maintenance, then you may now be entitled. You can use the online calculator to see if you may now qualify.