The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will soon pay out the one-off Christmas bonus for eligible recipients.
The government department will hand out a £10 top-up to individuals who receive any of the eligible benefits, to provide a little bit of extra support during the festive season. The qualifying benefits include Carer’s Allowance, Pension Credit, Personal Independence Payments (PIP), and more.
The payment will be made automatically so there is no need to apply for it. It is understood that the payment should land some time in the early days of December – a few weeks before Christmas. Those who qualify should see the payment land in their bank account, with code ‘DWP XB’ appearing on bank statements for this payment.
Should someone believe they are due but do not receive the payment by the end of December, the DWP encourages contact from January 1, at which time all payments should have been completed.
Who qualifies for the Christmas Bonus?
To qualify for the DWP Christmas Bonus, you need to be present or ‘ordinarily resident’ within the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the first full week of December, which serves as the qualifying week. Eligible individuals must be recipients of any of the following:
- Pension Credit (the guarantee element)
- Adult Disability Payment
- State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
- War Widow’s Pension
- Constant Attendance Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- Unemployability Supplement or Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- Attendance Allowance
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Disability Living Allowance
- Pension Age Disability Payment
- Mobility Supplement
- Child Disability Payment
- Widowed Mother’s Allowance
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Incapacity Benefit at the long-term rate
- Industrial Death Benefit (for widows or widowers)
- Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (once the main phase of the benefit is entered after the first 13 weeks of claim)
- Severe Disablement Allowance (transitionally protected)
- Carer’s Allowance
- Carer Support Payment
- Widow’s Pension
- Widowed Parent’s Allowance
- War Disablement Pension at State Pension age
The DWP further clarifies: “If you have not claimed your State Pension and are not entitled to one of the other qualifying benefits you will not get a Christmas Bonus.”
Moreover, couples who are married, in a civil partnership, or cohabitate, where each partner receives a qualifying benefit, should each anticipate a Christmas Bonus payment.
Could I get more than £10?
The Christmas Bonus is a one-off payment of £10. Recently, disgruntled benefit claimants have urged the government to raise this amount, arguing that a mere £10 handout is an ‘insult’ in the face of the ongoing cost of living crisis. It has been routinely argued that the Christmas Bonus would be worth much more now if it had risen with inflation since its inception in the 1970s, with some stating it should now be over £100.