New UC and ESA IR rates come into operation in Northern Ireland

The Universal Credit and Employment and Support Allowance (Rates of Allowances) (Amendments and Modifications) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2026 come into operation on 6 April 2026, the Department for Communities has confirmed¹. The Statutory Rule sets rates for the UC standard allowance, the UC Limited Capability for Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) element, and income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA IR) personal allowances, disability premiums and support component¹. It is a parity measure mirroring an equivalent Statutory Instrument laid by the Department for Work and Pensions on 9 February 2026, which also comes into force on 6 April 2026¹.

The UC standard allowance has been increased by the CPI rate of 3.8% and then a further 2.3% for 2026/27¹. The Department says this is an increase estimated to be worth £760 annually to a single parent aged 25 or over, or £1,195 for a couple where one is aged 25 or over with children by 2029/30¹. The monthly standard allowance rates set in the Rule include:

The Rule also sets the LCWRA element for a pre-2026 claimant, a Severe Conditions Criteria claimant or a claimant who is terminally ill at £429.80, up from £423.27¹. The Department says the protected rate of LCWRA has been uprated by 1.54% on average¹. A lower rate of LCWRA element applies from 6 April 2026 for claimants who are not in those protected categories, and will be frozen from 2026/27 to 2029/30¹. The Universal Credit Act received Royal Assent on 3 September 2025¹.

For ESA IR, the Rule sets personal allowance rates including £97.75 for a single claimant aged 25 or over and £77.52 for a single claimant aged under 25¹. The support component for an income-related allowance is £48.50¹. The Rule legally separates ESA IR personal allowance rates from ESA Contributory rates, so that ESA IR is uprated through this Statutory Rule while ESA Contributory, including New Style ESA, continues to be uprated through the annual Up-rating Order¹.

The Department estimates the increases will raise its Annually Managed Expenditure in 2026-27 by approximately £7m, to be met in full by HM Treasury¹. The Rule was made under sections 4(2)(a), (6)(c) and 25(1) and (2) of the Welfare Reform Act (Northern Ireland) 2007 and Articles 14(2), 17(3) and 48(1) and (5) of the Welfare Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 2015, and is subject to the negative resolution procedure¹.

Why it matters for households

The rates apply to UC and ESA IR claimants in Northern Ireland from 6 April 2026¹. The UC standard allowance rises for all claimants, while the higher LCWRA rate is retained only for pre-2026 claimants, Severe Conditions Criteria claimants and claimants who are terminally ill¹. Claimants outside those categories receive the lower LCWRA rate from 6 April 2026, frozen through 2029/30¹. The Department says the Rule further defines who counts as a pre-2026 claimant, which it says benefits disabled claimants in those categories by allowing them to keep the higher rate¹. The Department states the changes do not have significant adverse implications for equality of opportunity and that an Equality Impact Assessment is not necessary¹. How the April uprating process works, including the role of CPI, is set out in the guide to how rates rise each April, with wider coverage under benefits.

What happens next

The Rule had to be made and laid no later than 13 March 2026 to come into operation on 6 April 2026, aligning with the equivalent DWP instrument¹. The Department said the corresponding GB Statutory Instrument was expected to be laid on 9 February 2026 and come into force on 6 April 2026¹.