Who can claim
You can make a claim for Housing Benefit if:
- You pay rent to the Council.
- You pay rent to a private landlord.
- You pay rent to a Housing Association.
- You are a boarder whose rent includes meals.
- You live in a Hostel.
- You live in a mobile home or houseboat.
- You are renting under a shared ownership arrangement.
- If you are a joint tenant we can help pay your share of the rent.
There are circumstances where you will not be entitled to claim Housing Benefit
You will not be entitled to any Housing Benefit if:
- You are not responsible for paying the rent. However, in certain circumstances, you can be treated as the person who is responsible for paying the rent, even if your name is not on the Tenancy Agreement, for example, you are the partner of the person named on the Tenancy Agreement.
- Either you or your partner , or both of you together, have more than £16000 in savings (unless you get the guaranteed part of Pension Credit).
- You pay rent to a close relative who lives with you.
- You live in a care home, such as a nursing home or elderly person's home.
- You rent from your ex-partner and you both used to live there.
- You are the parent or guardian of your landlord's child.
- You live in the home as part of your job.
- You are an asylum seeker, unless you've been given refugee status or indefinite or exceptional leave (also called discretionary or humanitarian leave) to remain in the United Kingdom.
- You have been admitted to the United Kingdom on the condition that you have no recourse to public funds. This means that you must not claim benefits.
- You are a sponsored immigrant and have lived here for less than five years.
- You are in the United Kingdom illegally or your permission to stay has run out.
The other circumstances that might affect your eligibility to Housing Benefit
You may not get Housing Benefit if any of the following apply:
- You used to live with your landlord as a family member, relative or friend, and now pay that person rent.
- You live in a property run by a religious order and you are a member of that religious order.
- You rent from a trust and you are also a trustee or beneficiary.
- You rent the property from a company and you are a director or employee of the company.
- You used to own the property which you now rent.
- You are a student (most full-time students don't qualify, but some do). Visit Students page for more information.
- You are temporarily living away from your usual home.
You can make a claim for Council Tax benefit if:
- You own your home (either outright or you have a mortgage).
- You are the person whose name is on the Council Tax Bill.
If you are jointly responsible for Council Tax we can help pay your share of the bill.
There are circumstances where you will not be entitled to claim Council Tax Benefit
You will not be entitled to any Council Tax Benefit if:
- You are not responsible for paying the Council Tax bill.
