DWP contacts millions of households over major Universal Credit change

Richard Guttridge
·2-min read
workers walking in London
-Credit: (Image: Victoria Jones/PA)


The DWP is currently in the process of moving two million people over to Universal Credit (UC) as part of a major overhaul to the benefits system. When someone receives a letter in the post known as a migration notice, it means it is time for them to move over to UC.

From that point, they have three months to apply for UC or face losing their payments. The changeover does not happen automatically.

It affects the claimants of a number of benefits which are being scrapped by the Government to be replaced by UC. The six benefits coming to an end are: Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, Income Support, Income-related Employment and Support Allowance and Housing Benefit.

READ MORE: £200 cost of living payments for households not on DWP benefits

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Many of these claimants will have already been contacted and moved over to the new system while others will still be going through the process. Anyone who received a notice in September has been warned they must act fast, otherwise their payments will be stopped in December, just before Christmas.

You can opt to switch before receiving the notice if you believe you'll be better off on Universal Credit. But it's recommended that you do full research before requesting an early switch, as you cannot revert to your existing benefits once you've made the transition.

The DWP is aiming to have moved everyone over to UC by December 2025 following the massive undertaking of shifting everyone to a single benefit. They said: "Anyone affected will be sent a ‘migration notice’ by DWP to apply for Universal Credit as the department continues to transition over a million claimants on legacy benefits to Universal Credit.

"Legacy benefits - such as Tax Credits, Housing Benefit, Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Income-Related Employment and Support Allowance - are being phased out to bring government financial support into one place and, importantly, the majority of people will not be worse off under Universal Credit. Anyone who needs support is encouraged to contact DWP for a smooth transition before their deadline."

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