DWP explains Universal Credit rules as ‘claimants need to report this’ | Personal Finance | Finance

April 23, 2025 3,825

Universal Credit claimants have been warned that they may need to report some of their financial details to the DWP to receive their payments.

The rule came to light after a question in Parliament to the Government about what the DWP is doing to ensure those who work in farming or who otherwise have a fluctuating monthly income can still apply for Universal Credit where eligible.

DWP minister Sir Stephen Timms provided a response, explaining that the benefit is open both to those out of work and those on a low income, including the self-employed.

Outlining the current provisions for those with an irregular income, he said: “We recognise that some self-employed customers, including those in the farming industry, are likely to report large monthly fluctuations in their earnings.

“Steps have been taken to account for this, such as allowing self-employed losses to be carried forward into future assessment periods.”

He further explained how the DWP gets information about a person’s income to help calculate their benefits entitlement: “Wherever possible, employed earnings are received through the Real Time Information (RTI) system used by employers to report Pay As You Earn (PAYE) data to His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

“RTI enables a customer’s Universal Credit award to be automatically adjusted to reflect their fluctuating earnings, which eases the reporting burden on customers.”

However, in some cases claimants have to take the initiative to report some details to the DWP. Mr Timms said: “If earnings are not reported through RTI for any reason, the customer will need to self-report their earnings and provide evidence of these.”

The minister also spoke about some future changes to improve Universal Credit: “We are committed to reviewing Universal Credit to make sure it is doing the job we want it to, to make work pay and tackle poverty.

“The review will include consideration of the support in Universal Credit for customers with fluctuating incomes.”

Universal Credit payment rates increased 1.7% this month (April 2025), along with other benefit rates including Pension Credit and PIP (Personal Independence Payment).

Under the new rates, the monthly standard allowance for Universal Credit has increased to: