More than 356,000 households could see their benefit payments stopped from tomorrow as a key deadline arrives.
Labour’s managed migration programme, which moves people from legacy benefits onto Universal Credit, ends on March 31.
According to the latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), 356,521 households remain at risk of losing their payments if they fail to act.
Since July 2022, around 1.82 million households have been issued migration notices instructing them to switch to Universal Credit.
Of those, approximately 1.57 million have successfully made a claim, while just over 10,600 cases are still in progress.
Households that have received a migration notice are required to respond within three months or risk having their existing benefit payments stopped.
Six legacy benefits are being replaced as part of the transition.
These include Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Housing Benefit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support and income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.
DWP deadline to move onto Universal Credit arrives with hundreds of thousands yet to act
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The final phase of the rollout has focused on those receiving income-related Employment and Support Allowance, which supports individuals unable to work due to illness or disability.
This group was originally expected to move to Universal Credit by 2028, but the deadline was brought forward to March 2026.
The DWP has already stopped accepting new claims for Tax Credits, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance and Housing Benefit.
Support is available for those who have not yet completed the process.
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Claimants will have received a migration notice by post informing them of the change and outlining the deadline to apply
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Jobcentre Plus offices can provide in-person assistance with applications.
Citizens Advice offers a free “Help to Claim” service for people needing guidance through the transition.
Advisers can be contacted by phone on 0800 144 8 444 in England or 0800 023 2581 in Scotland.
Online support is also available through the Citizens Advice website.
A benefits calculator can help claimants assess their eligibility for Universal Credit and estimate potential payments.
Government figures indicate that around 1.4 million people moving from legacy benefits are expected to be better off under Universal Credit.
A further 300,000 are forecast to see no change to their payments.
However, around 900,000 claimants could receive less under the new system.
Of those, approximately 600,000 may qualify for transitional protection payments if they move through the managed migration process.
This support is designed to ensure claimants do not immediately lose income after switching.
Those who switch voluntarily or fail to meet the deadline and claim later will not be eligible for transitional protection.
Claimants who do not move onto Universal Credit risk having their payments stopped and may also miss out on future benefit increases.