The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has provided clarity on who will be eligible for a £300 payment following an MP’s query regarding the policy. The eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment have been updated this winter.
Prior to the changes, the £200 or £300 payment was distributed to most individuals of state pension age, but now recipients must also be receiving a qualifying means-tested benefit, such as Pension Credit. Conservative MP Alberto Costa raised a question about whether the department had considered there to be a difference between pensioners living in care homes and those in assisted living, when reviewing the policy.
According to the Government advice page, you can receive the payment “if you live in a care home” as long as you are also entitled to one of the qualifying benefits. For this winter’s payment, you must also have resided in the care home for less than 13 weeks, including the week of September 16 to 22, 2024, which is the qualifying week for the payment.
However, the guidance further specifies that you will not be eligible for the payment if you “were living in a care home for the whole time from 24 June to 22 September 2024”. Addressing Mr Costa’s inquiry, pensions minister Torsten Bell outlined additional restrictions on eligibility.
He stated: “Pensioners who are in receipt of a means-tested benefit such as Pension Credit, and who live in a care home are not entitled to a Winter Fuel Payment. This is because most will have their care and accommodation costs met by the local authority.”
Mr Bell clarified that, regarding the Winter Fuel Payment, a care home is defined by the Care Standards Act 2000 and the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016 in Wales, noting that assisted living accommodation “does not fall under this definition”. To be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment for Winter 2024 to 2025, individuals must have been born on or before September 23, 1958, and reside in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland.
You need to be on one of these benefits to qualify:
- Child Tax Credit
- Pension Credit
- Working Tax Credit.
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Income Support
- Universal Credit
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA).
Additionally, they must have been receiving a qualifying benefit during the week of September 16 to 22.