Overview & What you’ll get
1 Overview of the Winter Fuel Payment
You could get between £250 and £600 tax-free to help pay your heating bills if you were born on or before the qualifying date. This is known as a ‘Winter Fuel Payment’, which is sometimes called a winter fuel allowance or heating allowance.
The amount you get includes a ‘Pensioner Cost of Living Payment’. This is between £150 and £300.
Most payments are made automatically between November and January.
In July 2024, the government announced that the Winter Fuel Payment will become a means-tested benefit, so around 10 million people will now lose out on this payment.
You will only get Winter Fuel Allowance automatically if you receive Pension Credit or another social security benefit (not Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction, Child Benefit or Universal Credit).
Along with the Warm Home Discount and Cold Weather Payment you could be entitled to up to £850 per year. If you qualify but don’t get paid automatically, you’ll need to make a claim. Any money you get won’t affect your other benefits.
You can get the Winter Fuel Payment if you were born before 25 September 1957.
The minimum age to qualify for the 2024-5 Winter Fuel Payment will change next year.
The date and eligibility rules will change so you’ll need to check at a later date to find out if you’ll qualify in winter 2024-5.
2 What You’ll Get
How much you get depends on your circumstances during the qualifying week. The qualifying week for winter 2024 is 18 to 24 September 2023. Any money you get is tax-free and won’t affect your other benefits.
Circumstance
You qualify and live alone (or none of the people you live with qualify):
You qualify and get one of the benefits listed**:
You live with someone under 80 who also qualifies:
You live with someone 80 or over who also qualifies:
You qualify and live with your partner or civil partner and they get one of the benefits listed**:
You qualify but live in a care home and don’t get one of the benefits listed**:
** Benefits: Pension Credit, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), Income Support
*** Your partner getting the benefit will get the Winter Fuel Payment on your behalf
How and when you’re paid
You’ll get a letter telling you how much you’ll get and an estimated payment date.
Most payments are made automatically between November and January, and you should have received your money by 13 January 2024.
If you qualify and you’re not getting a social security benefit (or if you only get Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction or Child Benefit), you’ll need to make a claim.
All benefits, pensions and allowances are paid into an account, e.g. a bank account.
Do you qualify for Cold Weather Payments? >
Get the Warm Home Discount – £150 >
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0