DWP to send out ‘bonus’ payments to millions of UK residents before Christmas - check if you’re eligible

Millions of people across the UK are set to receive a bonus payment from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) before Christmas. The annual “Christmas Bonus” is a one-off, tax-free £10 payment made to those in recepit of the State Pension and who meet the eligibility criteria during a specific qualifying period - typically the first full week of December.

But while the latest figures from the DWP show there are now 12.6 million people receiving State Pension payments in the UK, not all of them will receive the £10 boost. Guidance on the Gov.uk website says: “If you have not claimed your State Pension and are not entitled to one of the other qualifying benefits you will not get a Christmas Bonus.”

It means if you have reached the age of 66, have chosen to defer your State Pension and are not in receipt of a qualifying benefit, you will not be due the £10 Christmas Bonus. If you do qualify, it’s worth noting the payment will land in your account separately, so it may arrive on a different day.

People in Scotland claiming the new Adult Disability Payment or Child Disability Payment will also be eligible for the payment - but it will come from DWP and not Social Security Scotland.

Who is eligible for the DWP £10 Christmas Bonus?

To qualify for the Christmas Bonus you must be in receipt of the State Pension and present or ‘ordinarily resident’ in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man, Gibraltar, during the qualifying week, which this year is expected to be December 4 - 10. You must also get at least one of the following benefits in the qualifying week:

• Adult Disability Payment
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• Attendance Allowance
• Carer’s Allowance
• Child Disability Payment
• Constant Attendance Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
• Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (once the main phase of the benefit is entered after the first 13 weeks of claim)
• Disability Living Allowance
• Incapacity Benefit at the long-term rate
• Industrial Death Benefit (for widows or widowers)
• Mobility Supplement
• Pension Credit - the guarantee element
• Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
• Severe Disablement Allowance (transitionally protected)
• Unemployability Supplement or Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
• War Disablement Pension at State Pension age
• War Widow’s Pension
• Widowed Mother’s Allowance
• Widowed Parent’s Allowance
• Widow’s Pension

The payment will show as ‘DWP XB’ on your bank statement. The DWP will write to eligible claimants advising them that they will be receiving the £10 bonus early in December.

How to claim

You do not need to claim the Christmas Bonus - you should get it automatically. More details are available on the Gov.uk website.