Benefit cap

The benefit cap limits the total amount of money someone can receive from all their benefits added together. If the total amount of benefits you and your partner receive is more than the allowed rate, then your benefit will be reduced to that rate.

The allowed rates for the financial year 2026/27 are:

• £283.71 per week (£25,322 per annum) for single people without children
• £423.46 per week (£22,020 per annum) for single parents, and couples with or without children

Any reduction in your benefits which is needed to bring you to the cap limit will be deducted from your Housing Benefit, Local Housing Allowance or Universal Credit.

Exemptions

You are not affected by the cap if you or your partner:

• get Universal Credit because of a disability or health condition that stops you from working (this is called ‘limited capability for work and work-related activity)
• get Universal Credit because you care for someone with a disability
• get Universal Credit, and you and your partner earn £881 or more a month combined, after tax and National Insurance contributions

You are also not affected by the cap if you, your partner, or any children under 18 living with you gets:

• Adult Disability Payment
• Armed Forces Compensation Scheme
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• Attendance Allowance
• Carer's Allowance
• Carer Support Payment
• Child Disability Payment
• Disability Living Allowance
• Employment and Support Allowance (if you get the support component)
• Guardian's Allowance
• Industrial Injuries Benefits (and equivalent payments as part of a War Disablement Pension or the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme)
• Pension Age Disability Payment
• Personal Independence Payment
• Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance
• War Pensions
• War Widow's or War Widower's Pension

For more information about the benefit cap changes, please visit www.Gov.UK/benefit-cap.