Change in circumstances - Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support

Contents

1. Overview
2. Changes you need to tell us about
3. How to tell us about changes
4. If you don't tell us about a change

Overview

If you get Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support, by law you need to tell us if your circumstances change.

Changes you need to tell us about

You need to tell us about any changes which might affect your benefits.

If you are not sure if you need to tell us about something, please tell us, and we will let you know if it affects your benefits.

Examples of changes you need to tell us about:

• Benefits - changes to Jobseeker's Allowance, Universal Credit, or any other benefits
• Who lives with you - if anyone moves in or out
• Income for you or anyone living with you - for example when wages or tax credits start, stop, go up or down
• Bank accounts, savings and investments - if the balance changes or your bank account details change
• Student - if you start or finish a course
• Hospital - if you enter or leave
• Prison - if you enter or leave
• Child leaves education
• Child Benefit - if you stop or start getting it
• Rent - if it goes up or down
• Childcare payments
• Address
• Death - if you are reporting a death, please use the government's Tell Us Once service, which will notify multiple government organisations

This is not a full list of changes that might happen which could affect your benefits.

How to tell us about changes

You can tell us about a change in circumstances online:

Report a change in circumstances

If you don't tell us about a change

If you don't tell us about a change, it might mean that:

• we have paid you too much Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support, or
• you have lost out on benefits that you are entitled to

If we find out about a change in your circumstances which affects your benefits, we will notify you what the right amount is and from what date we have made the change.

If you have been overpaid, a decision will be made on whether we ask you to pay it back.