Who does it affect?

The benefit cap doesn’t apply to everyone. It will only affect you if you are:

  • under State Pension age
  • receiving Housing Benefit or Universal Credit

Some people are exempt from the cap. For example, if you or your partner are receiving certain other benefits, such as Attendance Allowance, Carer's Allowance, Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment, the benefit cap won’t apply.

If you’re over State Pension age, the benefit cap will not apply to you. If you're in a couple and one of you is over State Pension age and one of you is not, you will usually be exempt, unless you or your partner are continuing to claim certain working age benefits.

You also won't be affected if you are working or you claim Universal Credit in certain circumstances.

If you are affected, you might be able to claim other benefits that would exempt you from the cap. Contact Citizens Advice for advice.

Next steps

To find out more about the benefit cap, whether you’re affected and how it affects your benefits, visit Gov.uk.

You can check whether you’re under or over State Pension age on Gov.uk.

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