People are being told to check if they can get an £812 interest-free loan from the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP ). Under the DWP Budgeting Loan system, the lowest amount you can borrow is £100, the benefits department stipulates.
You could receive £348 if you’re single, £464 if you have a partner and £812 if you or your partner claim Child Benefit. How much you could get depends on whether you can pay the loan back and have savings of more than £1,000 (£2,000 if you or your partner are 63 or over).
It also depends on whether you are paying back an existing Budgeting Loan or Crisis Loan. Budgeting loans are paid into the same account as your benefit. If you want to be paid into a different account, either change the account your benefit is paid into before you apply or apply using the paper form (this takes longer than applying online).
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To get a Budgeting Loan you must have been getting one or more of these benefits for the past 6 months: Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, and Pension Credit.
If you moved from Universal Credit to Pension Credit, any time spent claiming Universal Credit will count towards the 6 months. If you currently get Universal Credit, you cannot get a Budgeting Loan. Apply for a Budgeting Advance instead.
You also cannot get a Budgeting Loan if you get New Style Jobseeker’s Allowance or New Style Employment and Support Allowance or you’re involved in industrial action (for example a strike, walkout or lockout) or you owe more than £1,500 in total for Crisis Loans and Budgeting Loans.
Budgeting loans are paid into the same account as your benefit. If you want to be paid into a different account, either change the account your benefit is paid into before you apply or apply using the paper form (this takes longer than applying online).