Tell us if things change

When claiming Housing Benefit you must tell us about any changes that happen to you or the people living with you, as this may affect how much benefit you are entitled to.

You must not rely on someone else such as your landlord, the Job Centre, HMRC or a friend telling us about a change affecting you or the other people living with you.

You must tell us yourself.

Changes to tell us about

Some of the changes you must tell us about are if:

• There is a change in your income or benefits, or in the income or benefits of anyone living with you
• Anyone moves in or out of your home (even if they are only there for a short time)
• Your hours change, or you change jobs
• You start or stop working
• Your capital / savings increase above £6,000
• You are going to be away from home for a period of time
• If you are moving home

These are only some of the changes you need to tell us about.

If you aren’t sure if a change might affect your benefit, tell us anyway or contact us for more information. You may be asked to provide evidence of the change.

You may lose benefit if you delay telling us about any change in circumstances. If you are overpaid benefit as a result, you may have to pay it back.

Report a change in your circumstances

If you deliberately do not report changes, you’re committing benefit fraud.