This information is about Housing Benefit (HB) and Council Tax Support (CTS).
Benefits calculator
Use the Benefits calculator (GOV.UK) to check whether you are entitled to benefits and how much you might get.
Who can claim?
To claim CTS you must be:
- normally resident in the accommodation for which you are making a claim and
- liable for council tax.
To claim HB you must be:
- normally resident in the accommodation for which you are making a claim and
- liable for rent or council tax or both.
- not eligible for Universal Credit housing cost element. Please read the information below for information about this.
Universal Credit
Working age people making a new claim for help to pay their rent, must claim Universal Credit (UC).
UC exempt residents
The following people are not eligible to claim Universal Credit housing cost element to help them pay their rent and therefore, can claim HB.
- Pension age
- Living in specified exempt accommodation (including temporary accommodation provided by London Borough of Merton). If you are not sure if you live in specified exempt accommodation, please ask your landlord to confirm.
- Living in Supported Accommodation.
If you fall into one of these categories, you should continue to the sections below.
Restrictions on who can get HB or CTS
There are some circumstances where a person will automatically not be able to get HB or CTS because of their circumstances. If any of the following apply you will not get HB or CTS:
Savings over £16,000
If you have more than £16,000 you will not get HB or CTS. See Savings and capital for more details. If you are claiming as a couple we will add both your savings and capital and your partner's.
Living with a close relative
If you live with a close relative that you pay rent to, you will not be able to get HB. By close relative we mean:
- a parent; step parent or parent in law;or
- brother or sister (but not step brothers or sisters) or
- son, son-in-law, daughter, daughter-in-law, step-son, step-daughter or
- the partner of any of the above people.
Relationship to a landlord
If a person is responsible for the child of their landlord they cannot get HB.
There are other circumstances where a person may not get HB. For further information about who can get HB please contact us.
How much HB and CTS can I get?
If you are eligible to claim, you can get up to 100% of your rent and council tax paid. The calculations used to work out how much you get are complex and the actual amount depends on the amount of rent or council tax you are charged, your income and savings and the number of other people who live with you and their income.
Housing Benefit
The amount of rent we use to calculate entitlement is not necessarily the amount of rent you are charged. The Rent Service set the rates we use. See our Local Housing Allowance (LHA) page for more information. There may also be deductions for non-dependent adults who live with you.
If bills are included in your rent these will be deducted from the calculation as HB does not cover these costs, unless they are for communal or shared areas.
How we calculate HB. You can use the Benefits calculator (GOV.UK) to check whether you are entitled to Department for Work and Pension benefits and Housing Benefit and how much you might get.
Council Tax Support
The amount on Council Tax charge used to calculate your entitlement with depend on how much you are liable to pay. If you share the responsibility with other adults (not including your partner) we will split the liability by the number of people responsible and assess your Council Tax Support based on that.
There may also be deductions for non-dependent adults who live with you.
How we calculate Council Tax Support. We do not have a calculator to work out your possible entitlement to Council Tax Support. The best way to find out if you are entitled, is to make a claim for Council Tax support and we will tell you if you qualify.
Claiming and working
You and your partner, if you have one, can claim and still work, both full and part time.
Extra help when you start work
If you have been unemployed long term and are starting work, you can get an extended payment of four weeks Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support. We will work out if you are entitled to this extended HB payment if your claim for HB ends.
Claiming other welfare benefits or tax credits
If you are claiming income support , income based Jobseekers Allowance or Guarantee Pension Credit, you can get maximum housing and council tax benefit.
Certain benefits for disabled people are fully disregarded. These include:
- attendance allowance
- disability living allowance care and mobility components and
Other benefits, allowances and tax credits are taken into account in full.
Paying for childcare
If you are claiming as a couple or lone parent and paying for childcare you may be able to get a child care earned income disregard. We will ask you about this if you are eligible to claim HB.