Guidance

A3/2021: Housing Benefit (person who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 (Revised)

Updated 31 January 2022

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Who should read

All Housing Benefit staff

Action

For information

Subject

The Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) (Amendment) Regulations 2021

Revised 1 March 2021

We apologise for the inconvenience but this circular is being reissued, with changes to paragraph 8, to clarify the application of regulation 13ZA when a claimant dies and the younger partner continues to live in the property they shared with the claimant.

Guidance Manual

The information in this circular does not affect the content of the HB Guidance Manual.

Queries

Extra copies of this circular/copies of previous circulars can be found at Housing Benefit for local authorities: adjudication circulars

For queries about the:

Introduction

1. The Housing Benefit (Person who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 (SI 2021/188) were laid on 25 February 2021 and come into force on 1 April 2021.

2. SI 2021/188 makes amendments to the personal allowance rates for people who reach State Pension age on or after 1 April 2021. There are no changes to the personal allowance rates for people who reached State Pension age before 1 April 2021.

Background

3. The personal allowance rates for people receiving pension age Housing Benefit (HB) are based on the Standard Minimum Guarantee (in Pension Credit) plus the maximum amount of Savings Credit. As Savings Credit is treated as income for HB purposes this prevents any Savings Credit received from reducing the HB award. The same personal allowance rates are used for all pension age claimants regardless of whether the claimant receives Savings Credit.

4. Savings Credit is not available to people who reach State Pension age from 6 April 2016 but a decision was made to keep the HB personal allowances with the Savings Credit uplift for the first five years of the of the new State Pension despite removing access to the Savings Credit.

5. As a consequence, the HB personal allowance rates for those reaching State Pension age from 1 April 2021 will no longer include the Savings Credit element, in other words, the rates will be the same as the Standard Minimum Guarantee.

New personal allowance rates

6. The new personal allowance rates will apply to single people and couples where both reach State Pension age on or after 1 April 2021. However, for couples where one member reached State Pension age before 1 April 2021 and the other member reaches State Pension age after that date, there is no change to their personal allowance rates and they will continue to be entitled to the higher amount.

Example 1 – One member of couple over pension age on 1 April 2021

Couple, both pensioners, with combined income above the rate of the Pension Credit Guarantee Credit applicable to them. As the older partner reached State Pension age before 1 April 2021, their HB is calculated using the personal allowance rate which includes the Savings Credit uplift.

Example 2 – Single person reaches State Pension age after 1 April 2021

Single claimant in work reaches State Pension age on 1 April 2021. His employment ends in July 2021 and he claims HB. His state and private pension income exceeds the level of Pension Credit Guarantee Credit. As he had not reached State Pension age before 1 April 2021, his HB is calculated using the personal allowance without the Savings Credit uplift.

Example 3 – couple both reach State Pension age after 1 April 2021

Couple, both under State Pension age at 1 April 2021 and both are working. The older partner reaches State Pension age in August 2021 and becomes entitled to state pension. He continues working until his partner also reaches State Pension age in January 2022 and starts receiving her state pension, when they both stop work due to poor health. Their combined income from their state and a small private pension exceed the rate of Pension Credit Guarantee Credit. As neither partner had reached State Pension age before 1 April 2021, their HB is calculated using the personal allowance without the Savings Credit uplift.

7. Details of the new rates are provided in Annex A.

Couples who separate or where one member dies

8. If the older partner dies first, and the younger partner reached State Pension age on or after 1 April 2021 their new personal allowance rate will not include the Savings Credit uplift. However, if they remain in the same dwelling that they lived in with their deceased partner, regulation 13ZA of the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/214) will apply so that they continue to receive either their maximum rent or the reckonable rent due for 12 months.

9. If a couple separate the member who reached State Pension age before 1 April 2021 will be entitled to the higher personal allowance rate when assessing entitlement to HB. The member who reached State Pension age after 1 April 2021 will be assessed using the lower personal allowance rate.

10. Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) can be paid to those entitled to HB who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. There is no limit to the length of time over which a DHP award may be made. It may be awarded for a short period to give a claimant time to deal with their financial circumstances or for an indefinite period until their circumstances change. The start and end dates of an award are decided by local authorities on a case-by-case basis.

Annex A

Personal Allowance rates for claimants reaching State Pension age on or after 1 April 2021

Personal allowances

Housing Benefit rates for people who have reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit April 2021 £ Weekly
Single claimant who has attained pensionable age on or after 1 April 2021 177.10
Lone parent who has attained pensionable age on or after 1 April 2021 177.10

Couple

Housing Benefit rates for people who have reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit April 2021 £ Weekly
Both members have attained pensionable age on or after 1 April 2021 270.30

Polygamous marriages

Housing Benefit rates for people who have reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit April 2021 £ Weekly
If the claimant is a member of a polygamous marriage and all of the members of the marriage have attained pensionable age on or after 1 April 2021  
For the claimant and the other party to the marriage 270.30
For each additional spouse who is a member of the same household as the claimant 93.20
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