New claims for Housing Benefit
Housing Benefit can help pay your rent if you are on a low income. How much you will get depends on the type of accommodation you live in, the size of your family and the amount of money you have coming in each week.
If you own your own home, or are paying a mortgage to buy your own home, you are only able to claim Council Tax Support or a Second Adult Rebate to assist in paying your Council Tax.
If you live in accommodation which is rented from a private landlord or Registered Social Landlord (Housing Association), then you may qualify for help with your rent and your Council Tax.
New claims for Housing Benefit can only be accepted from households who meet one of the following criteria:
- tenants in exempt supported or temporary accommodation,
- those of State Pension Credit Age. If you are in a couple, you must BOTH be of pension age
If you require help with your housing costs but do not fall into one of the above categories, you should apply online for Universal Credit on gov.uk
You can also claim Council Tax Support to help pay your council tax. This is for people of any age, on a low income.
If you make a claim for Universal Credit, you should indicate if you wish to claim Council Tax Support. When your claim for Universal Credit is decided the Council will be informed and we will use that information to assess any entitlement to Council Tax Support. There is no need to claim for this separately.
If you do not hear from us within 2 weeks of your first payment of Universal Credit, please contact us.
Do I Qualify?
Find our if you qualify by using the Benefits Calculator
How do I make a claim?
It is now necessary to have an online account to make a new claim for benefit. You can make a claim using your My Erewash account.
Please read the questions carefully before completing. Every question must be answered, and you must provide all the evidence requested. If you fail to do so, you will be asked to provide further information and this will lead to a delay in your claim being processed.
What date will my entitlement start?
If you are in receipt of Guarantee Pension Credit, and have made a claim with us within one calendar month of the start of that benefit, any Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Support will be paid from the Monday following the start of your Guarantee Pension Credit award.
All other claim types will normally commence from the Monday following the date your claim is received by the Council.
How entitlement is calculated
Income
All income is assessed on a weekly basis. If you or your partner have "earned income" (that is, wages, salary or profits from a business), deductions are made for Tax, National Insurance and half of any pension contributions made.
Certain categories of income are "disregarded" in whole or in part for example Disability Living Allowance, Family Maintenance and Child Benefit.
Capital
If you or your partner are under 60 and have capital of between £6,000 and £16,000, additional income of £1 per week for every £250 (or part £250) is treated as income. This will be shown as "Capital Income" on any Benefit Notification.
If you or your partner are 60 or over and have capital of between £10,000 and £16,000, additional income of £1 per week for every £500 (or part £500) is treated as income. This will be shown as "Capital Income" on any Benefit Notification.
Applicable amounts
Applicable amounts are the assumed living costs of individual households for the purposes of the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support Schemes. These amounts are specified in Government Regulations. For further details of how your applicable amount is calculated please visit the Government's website.
How it's paid
Housing Benefit is normally paid directly to the claimant, however in certain circumstances, for example if you are in arrears or have difficulty managing your finances, payment can be made to the landlord on the claimants behalf.
Housing Benefit in most cases is paid by direct payment into a bank or building society account on a fortnightly basis in arrears where payment is to the claimant and four weekly in arrears where payment is made to the landlord. BACS payments are normally paid on a Friday. If the date of payment is a bank holiday, the monies will normally be credited on a earlier date.