If you don’t have enough money to live on, you might be able to get help to afford essentials like bills and food. This includes the Household Support Fund and cost of living payments.
You should check if you can claim benefits - you might be able to do this even if you work, have savings or own a home.
If you owe money and you're struggling to pay
You should speak to the organisations you owe money to – they might let you pay smaller amounts or take a break from payments.
Don’t ignore bills or letters about money you owe.
You can find out how to start dealing with your debts.
Check what benefits you can get
Lots of people miss out on benefits they’re entitled to - so it’s worth checking what you can get.
Claiming benefits might also let you get access to other financial help like cost of living payments and discounts on energy and transport.
You might be able to claim benefits or increase your current benefits if you’re:
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over 16 years old with a low income or no income
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sick or disabled, including if you have a mental health condition
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of State Pension age with a low income or no income
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a carer
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responsible for children
Check what benefits you can get.
Get your first benefit payment early
When you apply for benefits, you might be able to get your first payment early while you’re waiting for either:
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a decision on your application
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your first payment
This is called a 'short-term benefit advance'. You can get an advance for:
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Universal Credit
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Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
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Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
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Carer’s Allowance
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Pension Credit
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State Pension
You’ll need to pay back the advance. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will take an amount off your future payments until you've paid it back. For Universal Credit, you can spread the repayments over 24 months. For other benefits, you’ll usually repay your advance over 12 weeks.
If you've applied for Universal Credit, you can check how to get a Universal Credit advance payment.
If you’ve applied for a different benefit, contact the benefits office that's dealing with your claim. You can find their contact details on any letter or email you’ve had from them.
Check if you'll get a Cost of Living Payment
The government will send you a 'Cost of Living Payment' if you:
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get a benefit based on your income - for example, Universal Credit, Pension Credit, or tax credits
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get a disability benefit - for example, Personal Independence Payment
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are over State Pension age and get Winter Fuel Payments
You’ll get 1 Cost of Living Payment for each type of benefit you get. For example, if you get Universal Credit, Personal Independence Payment, and Winter Fuel Payments, you’ll get 3 Cost of Living Payments.
If you’re not claiming benefits yet, you should check if you can claim benefits. It's worth starting a claim as soon as possible if you're eligible - this means you might be able to get Cost of Living Payments in the future.
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If you get benefits based on your income
You should have got a payment of £300 by 19 November 2023 if you get any of the following benefits:
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Universal Credit
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Pension Credit
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Working Tax Credit
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Child Tax Credit
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income-based Jobseekers Allowance
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income-related Employment and Support Allowance
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Income Support
You’ll have only got one £301 payment - even if you get more than 1 of these benefits.
To get the latest payment you must have:
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been entitled to a benefits payment on any day from 18 August to 17 September 2023
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started a successful claim for Universal Credit by 18 August
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started a successful claim for another income-based benefit by 17 September 2023
If you’re waiting for a decision on your benefits claim, you won’t get the Cost of Living Payment until your claim is successful.
If your benefits are paid to someone else, like your landlord, you should still have got the Cost of Living Payment.
If you’re still eligible, the government will send you another payment of £299 during spring 2024.
If you get a disability benefit
The government gave a £150 Cost of Living Payment to people getting disability benefits between 20 June and 4 July 2023.
You would have been eligible for this one-off payment if you get any of the following benefits:
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Disability Living Allowance
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Personal Independence Payment
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Attendance Allowance
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Armed Forces Independence Payment
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Constant Attendance Allowance
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War Pension Mobility Supplement
To get this payment you must have:
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been getting one of these benefits on 1 April 2023
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applied for one of these benefits by 1 April 2023 - you won't get the payment until your claim is successful
If you're over State Pension age and get Winter Fuel Payments
You'll either get a £300 or £150 Cost of Living Payment, depending on your situation. You'll get this at the same time as your usual Winter Fuel Payment from November 2023.
You’ll get a £300 Cost of Living Payment if you live either:
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on your own
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with people who don’t qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment
If you live with someone else who qualifies for the Winter Fuel Payment, the amount you’ll get depends on whether either of you get any of the following:
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Pension Credit
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income-related Employment Support Allowance
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income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
If either you or the person you live with gets one of these benefits, you’ll both get £300 - as long as you’re not partners. If you’re partners, you’ll only get one £300 payment.
If neither of you gets one of these benefits, you’ll both get £150.
If you live in residential care and qualify for the Winter Fuel Payment, you'll get £150 unless you get any of these benefits.
Check if you need to apply for Winter Fuel Payments
You're usually entitled to Winter Fuel Payments if you’re of State Pension age in the third week of September. The State Pension age is 66.
You should start getting the Winter Fuel Payment automatically once you reach State Pension age. You might need to apply if you're in one of these situations:
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you don't get State Pension
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you don't get another benefit
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you live in the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein
You can find out how to apply for the Winter Fuel Payment on GOV.UK.