Deadline Alert: Switch to Universal Credit by 2024 or Lose Your Benefits
The government has set a strict two-year deadline for people claiming Child and Working Tax Credits, Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), Income Support, and Housing Benefit. By the end of 2024, you must switch to Universal Credit — or risk losing your cash.
Why the Delay? Covid Pushes Back Benefit Shake-Up
Originally, ministers planned to scrap these benefits in 2022. But the pandemic threw a spanner in the works. In May 2023, the government revisited the plan and delayed the deadline to December 2024. Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) will follow later, being phased out by 2028 as it merges with Universal Credit.
Universal Credit: The ‘Modern’ Solution
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says legacy benefits are bogged down in “complex and inefficient systems” with outdated IT. Universal Credit promises a slicker, digital setup that reacts as your earnings change.
“Over five million people are already supported by Universal Credit,” said former Work and Pensions Secretary Thérèse Coffey. “It’s a dynamic system that adapts as people earn more or less and simplifies our safety net for those who can’t work.”
Coffey added, “In 2012, Parliament voted to end the tangle of six legacy benefits. As we near completion, we’re fully shifting to a 21st-century system.”
What You Need to Do
- New benefit claimants are automatically placed on Universal Credit.
- If you claimed benefits before 2013 and haven’t switched yet, you MUST apply for Universal Credit before the 2024 deadline.
- Switching ends your old benefit claims automatically.
- Be prepared for a possible five-week wait between old benefits ending and new payments starting.
- You don’t have to wait to be told – if you think Universal Credit will work better for you, switch now.
Don’t get caught out by this looming deadline. Time to act or face losing your vital benefits.
