If you know someone who receives employment and support allowance benefits, please ask them if they need any help to complete their claim
Switching to Universal Credit if you’re disabled or have a health condition.
bpha’s Money Advice Manager, Amanda Ryan, is here to tell you more about changes to the government’s planned timing to move employment and support allowance benefits to Universal Credit.
Amanda Ryan
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Universal Credit was brought in more than ten years ago to replace six types of benefits for working age people, including child tax credits and housing benefit.
One of the last groups to be moved across to Universal Credit is people who receive employment and support allowance (ESA) because they have a disability or health condition. It will affect those who receive income-related ESA, and ESA with housing benefits.
The deadline for this was 2028 but the government has brought it forward to the end of 2025. The move will begin in September this year. Anyone claiming for the first time, if eligible, will automatically receive Universal Credit.
If you currently receive ESA, you’ll receive a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) telling you to claim Universal Credit. This is called a migration notice and you should be given at least three months to make the change after receiving your letter. If you don’t claim, your benefit payments will end.
The letter will explain how to claim Universal Credit online. If you’re not confident online or need some help with applying, we can help – please just get in touch using the contact information below.
Some people receiving ESA are very unwell and may not in a position to claim. If you know someone who receives ESA, please ask them if they need any help to complete their claim. If they’re a bpha customer, my team can answer questions and support them in completing the claim.
We know that some people are worried about being worse off by moving to Universal Credit. You don’t need to make any changes until you receive your letter from DWP. It’s definitely worth using our Better Off calculator to check what you are eligible to receive.
Get in touch and we’ll look at your situation and see how we can help.