Moving your benefits to Universal Credit

The Migration Notice letter and moving to Universal Credit

A hand holding 5, 10, and 20 pound notes with a red cross over one corner

What is happening?

Some old benefits are ending.

A woman with her thumbs down next to a checklist of red crosses

The benefits that are ending are:

Income -related Employment and Support Allowance
Working Tax Credit
Child Tax Credit
Housing Benefit
Income Support
Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.

The benefits that are ending are sometimes called legacy benefits.

A woman is reading a letter which came out of a brown envelope

What should I do?

1. Look out for a letter from the Department of Work and Pensions ( DWP ).

A man sat in a chair, reading from a sheet of paper.

If you get a legacy benefit, the DWP will send you a letter called a Migration Notice .

A front cover of a Universal Credit leaflet

The letter will tell you that your legacy benefit will end and you have to apply for Universal Credit.

A man searching for a webpage on a laptop sitting at a desk

2. Apply for Universal Credit

The front cover of a Universal Credit leaflet next to a calendar with a date circled in red pen

The letter will tell you when you have to apply for Universal Credit by.

A man on the phone and a woman at a laptop with a calendar behind them with a date circled in red

This is called a deadline date.

It is very important that you ask for help or apply for Universal Credit before the deadline date.

The deadline date is usually 3 months from the date the letter was sent to you.

The letter will tell you how to apply for Universal Credit.

A woman scratching her head and looking confused standing next to a question mark

3. Ask for help if you need it

A woman at a desk is talking on the phone. Behind her is a picture of a Jobcentre Plus office

If you need help to apply for Universal Credit, you can phone the Universal Credit Migration Notice helpline, or visit your local Jobcentre Plus.

Girl in wheelchair with a speech bubble showing a Universal Credit leaflet

Tell them that you need help to apply for Universal Credit and that you have a learning disability .

A woman on the phone, a calendar showing 3 months, and the front cover of a Universal Credit leaflet

Examples of help you might get or want to ask for are:

extra time to apply for Universal Credit
help to claim Universal Credit by phone instead of online
someone to visit you at home to talk about Universal Credit.

You can contact the Universal Credit Migration Notice helpline by:

Phone: 0800 169 0328
Relay UK: 18001 then 0800 169 0328.
Relay UK is for people who cannot hear or speak on the phone.

two clock faces showing the times 8am and 6pm

You can contact the Universal Credit Migration Notice helpline Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm.

A red cross is next to a picture of a man on the phone and a woman at a computer in front of a calendar with a date circled in red.

What will happen if I do not apply for Universal Credit?

If you do not apply for Universal Credit before the deadline date, your legacy benefit will end.

Three money sacks with a red cross over them

You will not get any more money from your legacy benefit.

A picture of an old benefit leaflet next to a picture of the new Universal Credit leaflet with 2 weeks from a calendar above them

What will happen after I apply for Universal Credit?

If you apply for Universal Credit before the deadline date, you will get your legacy benefit for 2 more weeks.

a book with Rules written on the front, with a green tick and red cross below

The rules are different if you get Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit.

A woman in a chair with her arms folded waiting. Next to her are 5 weeks from a calendar and a Universal Credit leaflet

You should start to get your Universal Credit money about 5 weeks after you apply for Universal Credit.

A handful of cash next to a green upward arrow

Your Universal Credit money might be more money than your legacy benefit money.

A handful of cash next to a red downward arrow

Your Universal Credit money might be less than your legacy benefit money.

A handful of cash next to a blue addition symbol

If you apply for Universal Credit before the deadline date and your Universal Credit money is less than your legacy benefit money, you might get some extra money called transitional protection.

A handful of cash next to a black equals symbol

The extra money means you might get up to the same amount of money as you got on your legacy benefit.

A handful of cash next to a black question mark

The extra money you get might change in the future.

If you need help with this information, please contact the Learning Disability Helpline:

email [email protected]
phone 0808 808 1111.

You can also get help about moving your benefits to Universal Credit from a benefits advice service like Advice Local.

Thank you to British Gas Energy Trust for funding.