If you currently get PIP, the number of points you need to qualify and how much you get will not change. You will claim your payment as normal.

If you got the health/Limited Capability for Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) element of Universal Credit (UC) before April 2026, the rules to qualify for it and the amount you’ll be paid will stay the same for you.

If you make a successful new claim for the health element of Universal Credit and have limited capability for work and work-related activity (LCWRA)  you will receive £217.26 a month. This is roughly half of what someone who qualified before April 2026 will get (£429.80 a month). This new lower rate will also be frozen until 2029/30. The higher rate will increase each year and will also be paid to people on Universal Credit who are terminally ill or suffering from a very severe and deteriorating health condition. 

If you need to make a new claim for PIP, there could be changes to how you are assessed and how severe your health condition needs to be before you can claim. The government is reviewing a range of potential reforms under the Timms Review. No firm changes have been announced yet, but if you successfully claim PIP before the Reviews report is agreed by Parliament in 2027, you shouldn’t be affected. 

If you live in Scotland, the Adult Disability Payment (ADP) has replaced PIP, and the Scottish Parliament sets the rules and payments for this benefit, so any changes proposed for PIP won’t affect ADP. However, the rules for Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance do sit under UK government law, so you could be affected if you’re claiming these benefits.

The Northern Ireland Executive is responsible for setting welfare benefit legislation and can choose to implement its own policies, so you will need to look out for information from the Executive on what it plans to do.

• If you currently claim UC or PIP you should carry on claiming as before and make sure you respond promptly to any communications you get from DWP regarding your claim.
• If you’re worried about your claim, the impact on your family or you need more help understanding the changes, you should seek specialist Benefits advice.
• You can get local Benefits advice using the Advice Now portalOpens in a new window

• People with a limited capacity to work because of a disability or long-term sickness, get a Universal Credit top-up payment.
• But from April 2026, if you’re making a new claim, the payments will be cut in half, from £423.27 a month (2025/2026) to £217.26 a month in 2026/2027.
• The basic rate of Universal Credit will start to rise slightly above inflation from April 2026 onwards, when it will be £424.90 a month for single people aged 25 or over. By 2030, on top of any increases due to inflation, the basic rate will be about £60 a month higher than in 2026. 
• Under the original benefit reform plans, under-22s would no longer qualify for the health element of Universal Credit. However, this proposal hasn’t yet been agreed by parliament. At the moment, people under 22 can still claim Universal Credit and other benefits or elements they’re eligible for.

“Right to try” is a new guarantee meaning that trying out a job will not lead to your condition being reassessed or to a review of the benefits you’re getting. You’ll also be able to go back onto your previous benefits without a waiting period if the job does not work out. The guarantee, which hasn’t yet been finalised, will eventually apply to all Universal Credit, new-style Employment and Support Allowance and PIP claimants. We will update this blog once we know more about how this will work and when it will. come into force.

There is a new scheme called Pathways to Work.  

Specialist advisers are based in every Job Centre in England, Wales and Scotland providing free, voluntary and personalised support on a one-to-one basis to people getting Universal Credit with Limited Capability for Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) status.

The aim is to connect them to skills training such as IT courses and HGV qualifications. You won’t face a benefit sanction if you don’t take part, as you are not expected to look for work if you have LCWRA.