You will not be eligible to claim housing benefit if:

• You have savings of over £16,000 (unless you are aged 60 or over and getting the 'guarantee credit' element of pension credit)
• You live in the home of a close relative: parent; step-parent or parent-in-law; brother or sister; son or son-in-law; daughter or daughter-in-law; step-son or step daughter (or partner or any of these)
• You are a full-time student, unless:
• You are disabled
• You have children
• You are on a course of further education ('A' levels, for example). Please note that full-time students on a course of higher education (degree courses, for example), are not eligible for benefit unless they are disabled or have children. For more information on students, please follow the relevant link on this page.
• You're an asylum seeker or are sponsored to be in the UK
• You’re a member of a religious order who is maintained fully by that order
• You co-own your home with a Housing Association (however, if you have ‘shared’ ownership, you may be able to get Housing Benefit)
• You own your home or you have a long lease (of over 21 years) on your property
• You are a resident of a bail or probation hostel
• You are a Crown tenant (someone renting their home from the Crown or a government department), although there are exceptions to this
• You are renting a former joint home from an ex-partner
• You or your partner are responsible for the landlord’s child
• You are living in tied accommodation (for example you live in the property as a condition of your employment)
• You used to be a non-dependant of a previous claimant and that person still lives at the address
• You are renting a property from a company of whom one of the following people are a director: you, your partner, your former partner or your close relative (if they live with you)
• You used to own the property, unless you owned it more than five years ago or you had to release ownership of the property in order to remain in it – for example, the property has been re-possessed

Other restrictions

If you live with a partner or civil partner, only one of you can claim housing benefit. We will take into account the income you both receive when working out how much benefit you can get.

How to check whether you can claim

If you think you may be able to claim housing benefit, or if you are unsure, please contact the Benefits Service where a member of staff will be able to give you more advice.

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