Help to Save eligibility expanded for Universal Credit claimants

The eligibility rules for Help to Save accounts changed on 6 April 2025, so that all working individuals in receipt of Universal Credit who earn £1 or more can open an account¹. The Help-to-Save Accounts Regulations 2025 were made on 11 March 2025 and laid before the House of Commons on 12 March 2025, coming into force on 6 April 2025². HM Revenue & Customs published a tax information and impact note on the change on 12 March 2025¹.

Under the previous rules, set out in the Help-to-Save Accounts Regulations 2018, individuals receiving Universal Credit could not open an account if their weekly household or individual earnings were less than the equivalent of 16 hours a week at the national living wage rate⁴. The 2025 regulations amend paragraph (3)(b) of regulation 3 of the 2018 regulations so that a claimant must have earned income of at least £1 in the assessment period immediately before the first eligibility reference date, and delete paragraph (6)(d), removing the reference to the national living wage rate².

The scheme pays a 50% bonus on up to £50 of monthly savings⁴. The explanatory memorandum states that expanding eligibility "will ensure that Help-to-Save is accessible to many more households that require financial support"⁴.

The change applies across the United Kingdom⁴. National Savings and Investments administers Help to Save accounts for the government, and the explanatory memorandum says the expansion may have a negligible impact on it, with no or no significant impact on other businesses, charities or voluntary bodies⁴. The instrument does not include a statutory review clause⁴. A consultation on the future of the Help to Save scheme was published in April 2023, and comments received on the eligibility criteria were supportive of lowering or removing the earnings thresholds⁴.

Why it matters for households

The change widens who can open a Help to Save account among people claiming Universal Credit. A claimant whose earnings in the relevant assessment period are £1 or more now meets the earnings condition, where previously the test was set at the equivalent of 16 hours a week at the national living wage rate⁴. The account carries a 50% bonus on up to £50 of monthly savings⁴. Because the qualifying period is the assessment period immediately before the first eligibility reference date, the earnings figure that counts is the one for that specific period rather than an average². Savings held in a Help to Save account can affect means-tested benefits, which is covered in how savings affect Universal Credit and other benefits and in does Help to Save affect benefits?.

What happens next

HMRC says it will monitor the impact of the change on an ongoing basis using information provided by National Savings and Investments as the account provider⁴. HMRC's technical manual and guidance for Help to Save will be amended to reflect the new account rules⁴. The explanatory memorandum states that the Exchequer impacts of the eligibility change were published at Autumn Budget 2024⁴.