Universal Credit rollout invites income-based Jobseekers Allowance claimants

People claiming Jobseekers Allowance (Income-Based) were to be invited to claim Universal Credit in September 2024, according to a rollout timetable published by the Law Centre NI in its Social Security Bulletin for Summer 2024¹. The September 2024 group is the last in the phase of the rollout set out in that bulletin, which began in May 2024¹.

The bulletin lists the groups invited under the next phase of Universal Credit rollout in the following order¹:

The bulletin does not state how many people are affected by the September 2024 invitation, nor the date within the month on which invitations are issued. Those details have not been reported¹.

The same bulletin sets out a separate change to the administrative earnings threshold, the level of earnings below which Universal Credit claimants are placed in the intensive work search regime. Draft regulations would raise the threshold from 15 hours per week at the National Living Wage for an individual to 18 hours, and from 24 hours per week for couples to 29 hours. In cash terms this is an increase from £617 per calendar month for an individual to £892, and from £988 for couples to £1,437¹. The bulletin states that the revised threshold will apply to existing and new Universal Credit claimants, including those being migrated as part of Move to UC¹. It does not give a date on which the higher threshold takes effect¹.

On backdating, the bulletin notes that under Regulation 25(3) a claim can be backdated for up to one month, but adds that the system is not designed to notify or encourage backdated claims¹. It also reports that the Department for Work and Pensions has introduced an online application process for budgeting loans in Great Britain, using a digital claim form on Gov.uk, and that the service is not yet available in Northern Ireland, where applications can only be accepted by post¹.

Why it matters for households

People receiving income-based Jobseekers Allowance are the group affected. Once invited, a household moves from legacy benefits to Universal Credit, which is paid as a single monthly amount and is calculated from the standard allowance and any extra elements the household qualifies for. Housing support that came through Housing Benefit is instead paid as part of the Universal Credit award, so rent help is delivered through the Universal Credit housing element rather than as a separate benefit.

The bulletin does not set out the deadline by which an invited claimant must act, the date payments change, or transitional protection arrangements for this group. Those details have not been reported¹. The administrative earnings threshold change affects a different set of people: Universal Credit claimants who are in work, including those moved across from legacy benefits, whose earnings are measured against the higher hours and cash thresholds¹.

What happens next

The bulletin gives no further dates beyond the September 2024 invitation for income-based Jobseekers Allowance claimants, and no date for when the revised administrative earnings threshold takes effect¹.