Housing benefit
You may be eligible for housing benefit and/or council tax benefit if you are on a low income. Check your eligibility and information about how to make a claim online.
- New claims
How to check entitlement and apply for housing and/or council tax benefit.
- Backdated claims
If you have a good reason for not claiming earlier, you can ask us to consider backdating your benefits.
- Local Housing Allowance
Local Housing Allowances (LHA) apply to people who are claiming Housing Benefit (HB) for a property which is rented from a private landlord with an assured or an assured shorthold tenancy.
- Frequently asked questions
Questions and answers about housing benefit.
- Change of circumstances
Your entitlement to housing benefit and/or council tax benefit is based on the information on your application form. Your entitlement will change if your circumstances change.
- Appeals against housing and council tax benefit
How to appeal against your local council's decision on Housing Benefit
- Update for landlords on changes to housing benefit
Read all about changes to housing benefit from April 2011 and January 2012.
- Benefit Cap
From April 2013 a limit will be put on the amount of benefit that working-age people can get. This is called a benefit cap. The benefit cap means that people should not get more in benefit payments than the average wage paid to people in work.
- Changes to housing benefit in the social sector
From 1 April 2013 there will be changes in the way housing benefit is calculated for working age claimants living in accommodation rented to them by a local authority, registered housing association or other registered provider of social housing.
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