Managed migration to be completed by Spring 2026

The Department for Work and Pensions has said that all migration notices should be sent by the end of December 2025 and that the managed migration process should be completed by Spring 2026¹. The statement covers the transfer of claimants from legacy benefits to Universal Credit, and to Pension Credit for some people over state pension age¹.

Claimants of income-related Employment and Support Allowance, whether claimed alone or with Housing Benefit, are the last group to be migrated¹. A migration notice is the letter telling a claimant they need to claim Universal Credit, and it gives the date by which the claim must be made¹. If the claim is not made in time, the old benefit payments stop¹. A claimant who misses the deadline on the letter and claims afterwards might lose the transitional protection element top-up payment¹. Extensions may be possible but are considered case by case, and a request should be made before the deadline date on the letter¹.

The transitional protection element is a temporary top-up for people who have been managed migrated and who would be entitled to less under Universal Credit or Pension Credit than under their old legacy benefits¹. The old benefit amount is compared with an indicative amount calculated on the same details and income; where the indicative amount is lower, the element makes up the difference¹. It is only added for managed migration, not for new claims, natural migration or voluntary migration¹.

The element is temporary and is eroded. It does not increase each year in the way benefit rates can, and it is reduced penny for penny as the Universal Credit or Pension Credit award rises, so no increase in that award is received until the element reaches £0¹. Increases that reduce it include annual uprating each April, a new element being added, and a rent increase or higher Local Housing Allowance rates raising the housing element¹. Changes to childcare costs do not reduce it¹. It does not reduce until a claimant has been receiving Universal Credit for at least a month, and from the second assessment period onwards reductions are made in the same period as the increase¹. Fluctuating earnings do not change it, unless the administrative earnings threshold rule applies¹.

The element is removed completely where the claim is no longer comparable to the one it was based on, including if a partner leaves or joins the household, if household earnings drop below the administrative earnings threshold for three assessment periods in a row, or if the Universal Credit award ends¹. Once lost, it is not applied to future awards, with one exception: where the award ends because of an increase in income and a new Universal Credit claim is made within three months, the new claim is treated as a continuation of the old one and the element can be included again¹.

Why it matters for households

Households still on legacy benefits, particularly those on income-related Employment and Support Allowance, are the ones affected by the remaining migration timetable¹. For anyone moved under managed migration who would otherwise receive less, the transitional protection element holds their total award at the level of their old benefits, but only until increases in the Universal Credit or Pension Credit award erode it to nil¹. In practice this freezes the total amount received until the element runs out, after which further increases in the award are paid¹. The element can be lost entirely through a change such as a partner joining or leaving the household, or through earnings falling below the administrative earnings threshold for three consecutive assessment periods¹. Help with making a claim is available from the Universal Credit Migration Notice helpline on 0800 169 0328, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, from a local job centre, or from Citizens Advice Universal Credit Help To Claim¹. What to do on receiving a migration notice is set out in the site's guide, and the wider benefits section covers the system the migration moves claimants into.

What happens next

The DWP has said the migration process should be completed by Spring 2026, following the sending of all migration notices by the end of December 2025¹. No further dates beyond those have been reported.