7 March 2017
Universal Credit - removal of housing costs element for some claimants aged 18-21
Legislation has been laid bringing in the removal of help with housing costs for some Universal Credit claimants aged 18-21.
Effective from 1 April 2017, the housing costs element will not be included in an award of Universal Credit where the claimant is a renter, single, aged 18 to 21 and subject to all work-related requirements.
There are some exemptions from the rule, including where the claimant:
- is responsible for a child or a qualifying young person;
- was a care leaver before reaching the age of 18;
- receives the care component of disability living allowance at the middle or highest rate or the daily living component of personal independence payment;
- has been subject to, or threatened with, domestic violence by their partner, former partner, or a family member;
- cannot live with their parents due to a serious risk to their physical or mental health and the Secretary of State considers it inappropriate to expect them to do so;
- either has no parent or neither parent lives in GB
- has earned income equal to or exceeding the monthly amount they would earn whilst working 16 hours per week at the National Minimum Wage; or
- has earnings in each of the 6 months ending before the calendar month in which the claim for universal credit is made that are equal to or more than the appropriate earnings threshold (in which case a six-month exemption will apply)
And the exclusion of help with housing costs will not apply to claimants:
- in receipt of housing benefit or universal credit in live service areas;
- receiving help with housing costs from housing benefit or the universal credit live service immediately prior to a move to full service; and
- in full service areas, where the award of universal credit includes the housing costs element when the regulations come into force but only until a break in entitlement to universal credit or the housing costs element
SI 252/2017 can be found on the legislation.gov.uk website