Housing Benefit is money to help you with your housing costs if you are on a low income. It can help with rent and some service charges. Housing Benefit is being replaced by Universal Credit. Please go to 'Can I get Housing Benefit?' page of this guide for information on who can still claim. If you've received a notice letter telling you to claim Universal Credit, read our guide Universal Credit Migration Notice to find out about your next steps. 

If you qualify, Housing Benefit can be paid whether or not you are working.

If you are a private tenant, the amount of Housing Benefit you get may be restricted by the Local Housing Allowance Rate in your area. If you are a social tenant, it could be restricted by the number of bedrooms you have under the 'Bedroom Tax'.

A Benefit Cap may be applied to your Housing Benefit if the total amount of certain benefits that you get is more than a specified amount. Your Housing Benefit could be reduced in this case.

Mortgages or home loans

You cannot get Housing Benefit to help with the costs of a mortgage or home loan. If you own the home you live in, you may be able to get a loan for mortgage interest if you are getting Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), Pension Credit or Universal Credit. 

Applies to: England, Scotland and Wales

If you live in Northern Ireland, see our Housing Benefit (Northern Ireland) guide.

Age rules: There are no specific age rules that affect Housing Benefit entitlement but you must be old enough to enter into a tenancy agreement.

Type of benefit: Means-tested benefit

Taxable: No

Administered by: Your local council

Housing Benefit and Universal Credit

Housing Benefit is being replaced by Universal Credit. You will only be able to make a new claim for Housing Benefit in the situations listed below. Otherwise you would have to claim Universal Credit to get help with your housing costs. If you've received a notice letter telling you to claim Universal Credit, read our guide Universal Credit Migration Notice to find out about your next steps.

You can still make a new claim for Housing Benefit in one of the following situations:

• You are 66 or over, or
• You live with a partner and both you and your partner are 66 or over (if one partner is 66 or over and the other isn't, use the Benefits Calculator to check what you can get), or
• You were homeless and have been placed in temporary accommodation by the council, or
• You are living in sheltered or supported accommodation.

If you or your partner are receiving a legacy benefit such as Child Tax Credit or Housing Benefit, you will lose these if you make a claim for Universal Credit. 

Everyone under 66 on housing benefit will be moved over to Universal Credit in the next couple of years. You don't need to do anything right now unless:

•  Your situation changes in a way that ends one of your existing benefits, or
•  you receive a letter from the DWP telling you your existing benefits are stopping and you have to move over to Universal Credit.

Can I get Housing Benefit?

You can still get Housing Benefit in one of the following situations:

• You are on Housing Benefit at present (unless you claim Universal Credit) or
• You are 66 or over, or
• You live with a partner and both you and your partner are 66 or over (if one partner is 66 or over and the other isn't, use the Benefits Calculator to check what you can get), or
• You were homeless and have been placed in temporary accommodation by the council or you are in supported accommodation. 

In addition:

• You are responsible for paying the rent on the home where you normally live, and
• Your income is low enough, and
• Your capital and savings are under £16,000 (unless you get Guarantee Pension Credit, in which case there is no capital limit).

It does not matter if your landlord is a private landlord or a social landlord, for example, a council or housing association. If you live with a partner, only one of you can claim Housing Benefit for you both. If you qualify, Housing Benefit can be paid whether or not you are working.

Housing Benefit does not help with a mortgage. See our Support for Mortgage Interest Loan guide if you are a homeowner.

You do not qualify for Housing Benefit if you:

• Live in the home of a close relative. Find who counts as a close relative.

• Are a full-time student (unless you have a disability or children).

What happens to my Housing Benefit if I change my address?

If you are on Housing Benefit and change address, you can stay on Housing Benefit if you stay within the same local authority area, if this is your only change of circumstance.

If you move to an area which has a different council, you won't be able to claim Housing Benefit and would have to claim Universal Credit instead, unless you are moving into temporary accommodation provided by the council.

It can be complicated to work out how much Housing Benefit you might get. You can use the Turn2us Benefits Calculator which will calculate how much Housing Benefit you may be entitled to.

If you get benefits like Income Support, income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or the guarantee part of Pension Credit, you will get your maximum amount of Housing Benefit, but this will not necessarily cover all of your rent.

Even if you are working, you might get some Housing Benefit to help towards your rent. This depends on your income and savings, and on your personal circumstances.

Bedroom entitlement

Part of the Housing Benefit calculation for private tenants and working-age social tenants is based on how many bedrooms you are thought to need for your household. You are allowed one bedroom for each category shown below:

• Each adult couple

• Each person over 16

• Two children of the same sex under 16

• Two children under 10, regardless of their sex

• Any other child

• An overnight carer you need but who doesn't normally live with you.

Private tenants have an extra category meaning that most single people, under age 35, with no children are only allowed one bedroom in shared accommodation, rather than a one bedroom property to themselves.

Some households are allowed an extra bedroom under the size criteria rules:

• Foster carers who have had a child placed with them, or have registered as a carer, in the last 12 months

• Parents of Armed Forces personnel - while their child is away on duty, their room won't be considered as 'spare' if they intend to return to it

• Parents of a disabled child in receipt of middle or high rate care component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) - if they are unable to share a room with a sibling but would be expected to under normal size criteria rules

When considering whether a child’s disability makes it unreasonable for them to share a bedroom, the factors a local authority should consider include:

• Whether the child is currently sharing a bedroom without difficulty;

• Whether the frequency and nature of any overnight care causes prolonged and/or repeated disruption to another child;

• Whether the nature of the disability increases the likelihood that the child may behave disruptively during the night;

• Whether sharing a bedroom poses a risk of physical harm to either child; and

• How long the situation is likely to last - to qualify for an extra bedroom, the inability to share would be expected to be long term.

Private tenants

If you are a private tenant and you have made a new claim or moved since 7 April 2008, how much rent can be paid by Housing Benefit will be restricted by the Local Housing Allowance (LHA).

Your Local Housing Allowance rate is based on rental prices in your area and the size of property you are entitled to. This might mean that not all of your rent can be paid by Housing Benefit because your rent is considered to be too expensive.

If you are a private tenant, you can visit the LHA Direct website to find out what your Local Housing Allowance is.

The Turn2us Benefits Calculator can calculate how much Housing Benefit you may be entitled to.

If you and your partner are under 66 and move to a new local authority area you will lose your Housing Benefit, and would have to claim Universal Credit for help with your housing costs.  Use our benefits calculator to see how this affects you.

Social tenants

If you rent your home from a social housing landlord such as the council or a housing association, and you are under 66, your Housing Benefit is not based on rental prices in your area. However, it may be reduced if it's considered you have more bedrooms than you actually need. This rule is known as the 'Social Sector Size Criteria' and is also commonly referred to as the 'Bedroom Tax'.

If your home is considered to be too big for you, the rent amount used to calculate your Housing Benefit will be cut by:

• 14% if you have one spare bedroom

• 25% if you have two or more spare bedrooms.

If you are over 66, this size criteria does not affect your claim for Housing Benefit.

If you are living in a Sanctuary Scheme after experiencing domestic violence, you are exempt from the bedroom tax.

Deductions for other adults

If you have other adults living with you who aren’t your partner and do not have to pay rent, they might be treated as your non-dependent. This means that an amount will be taken off your Housing Benefit because this other person is expected to help with the rent. 

You won’t have money taken off your Housing Benefit for a non-dependent if:

• You (or your partner) are certified blind or severely sight impaired
• You (or your partner) receive Attendance Allowance, the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP), the care component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP).

You also won’t have any money taken off your Housing Benefit for any other adult who:

• Is a full time student; or
• Is under 18; or
• Is under 25 and getting ; 
  • Universal Credit and isn’t earning anything, or
  • income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA), or
  • Income Support; or
• Gets Pension Credit.

If money is taken off your Housing Benefit for another adult, how much is taken off depends on the other adult’s earnings. It is important to make sure the council has accurate information about the other adult’s earnings so they can make the right decision about your housing benefit.

Benefit Cap

Housing Benefit is included in the Benefit Cap which limits the total amount in some benefits that working-age people can receive. For those affected, the cap is applied by reducing the amount of Housing Benefit awarded.

See our Benefit Cap guide for more details.

How will I be paid Housing Benefit?

If you are a council tenant, you will not be paid Housing Benefit directly. Instead, it will be taken off the rent you have to pay so you pay less rent or no rent yourself.

If you have a private landlord, you will be paid straight into your bank or building society or through the Payment Exception Service if you are unable to open or manage one of these or a similar account. Sometimes the council can pay your landlord directly.

Housing Benefit is usually paid in arrears every week, two weeks, four weeks or a month, depending on when your rent is usually due.

Housing Benefit and other benefits

Housing Benefit counts in full as income when calculating your entitlement to other means-tested benefits .

Reviewed: February 2023

Contact your local council to find out how they need you to claim. Some provide a paper claim form, others take claims online or over the phone.

What documents will I need to claim Housing Benefit?

When you claim Housing Benefit, you must give your national insurance number and evidence of who you are, for example, a birth certificate or driving licence. You also need to give evidence that you must pay the rent, for example, your rent book or tenancy agreement.

You might need to give evidence of your income and savings, for example, bank statements or pay slips.

When will my Housing Benefit claim begin?

Housing Benefit can be backdated for up to one month if you would have been entitled to it earlier. You have to show a good reason for not claiming sooner. Request this when claiming.

If you and your partner are over 66 and you are not getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, your claim can be backdated for up to three months. It does not matter why your claim is late. Request this when claiming.

Change of circumstances

You must report changes in your circumstances which might affect your entitlement to this benefit.

If you disagree with the decision made on your benefit claim you can ask for a written statement of reasons. If you still believe the decision is wrong, for example due to incorrect information being used, you can ask for it to be looked at again, and/or appeal.

The time limits are strict; you will usually be given one month to dispute a decision, so it is important to seek advice and act quickly.

You can find more information on our Challenging a Housing Benefit decision guide.