People Living With You
Your Housing Benefit may be affected if any of the following people live with you:
- Children who have left school
- Relatives
- Friends
- Lodgers
The rules set by the government say we must assume that anyone who is living in your home is paying you money for staying with you, even if they are not. This means that you will get less Housing Benefit, depending on their circumstances.
It is important that you tell us who is living in your home so we can make sure you are getting all the Housing Benefit you have a right to claim.
Who does not count?
We will not reduce your Housing Benefit if the person who is living with you:
- is your partner
- does not normally live in your home
- is under 18
- is under 25 and claiming Income Support or income based Job Seekers Allowance
- is a full-time student (but if they get a job during the summer, we will reduce your Housing Benefit)
- gets a Youth Training Allowance
- is in prison
- has been in hospital for more than six weeks
And we will not reduce your Housing Benefit because you have other people staying with you if you or your partner is:
- registered blind
- getting Attendance Allowance
- getting Disability Living Allowance
(Car Component)
How much is taken off my Housing Benefit?
By law we have to take off certain amounts for each person who is living with you when we are working out how much Housing Benefit you can get. These amounts are set by the government and we cannot change them. We have to do this no matter how much money they are giving you. The amount we take off depends on person's age and income.
Is anything else taken off?
Yes. If you have people staying with you who pay you rent, we will take this money into account when we are working out how much Housing Benefit you can claim. These people are called sub tenants. If you provided meals for them, they are called boarders.
What if my circumstances change?
The amount of Housing Benefit you receive is based on the information you give us when you fill in your application form and if your circumstances change, then your Housing Benefit may change too. Therfore you must tell us in writing if you have a Change in Circumstances, for example:
- you lose your job
- you start working
- someone leaves or joins the household
- your rent changes
- you move house
- someone in your household gets a job or a wage increase, loses a job or goes from one benefit to another