DWP Christmas bonus update as millions handed December top-up

Millions of Brits could be in for a December cash top up just in time for Christmas - and even more help is on offer for some.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has responded to a petition demanding an increase to the annual Christmas Bonus for benefit claimants.

Every year, the DWP pays £10 to Britons who receive certain benefits, usually during the first week of December.

The payment was introduced in 1972 at £10, which would be worth over £100 in today’s value. However, the amount has remained virtually unchanged for just over five decades, drawing widespread criticism from benefit claimants and charities.

An online petition is urging the Government to permanently increase the payment in line with inflation, which would bring it to £115.08, according to the Bank of England’s calculator.

The petition, launched by Shona McMahon in 2023, has gained more than 20,000 signatures so far.

It reads: “Christmas is the most expensive time of year! Pensioners, the vulnerable & people like myself, disabled, could do with an extra boost at this time of year, especially as the energy assistance has been axed. It was shocking to learn that the ‘£10 Christmas Bonus’, has been the same for OVER FIVE DECADES!!” (sic)

Ms McMahon continued: “This isn’t asking for ‘just another handout’, this is for those of us that don’t have an option to earn anything extra.

“I implore you to sign & share this, if only because the government wouldn’t like their bonus to be stagnant for 51 years! Then we respectfully ask that our Christmas bonus be raised in line with inflation please, or more.” (sic)

And a DWP spokesperson has now responded, stating that although the amount won't be increased there is other help available for some.

They said: “We are taking immediate action to turn around the dire inheritance we face – with more people living in poverty now than 14 years ago.

“This includes extending the Household Support Fund for the most vulnerable, kickstarting work to develop a strategy to reduce child poverty and taking the first steps towards delivering a genuine living wage for working people.”

People can check their council's website or call their office to find out what support is available locally to them through the Household Support Fund.

For a few examples of how local authorities have previously used the fund, Birmingham City Council distributed grants of up to £200 to help households with food costs and energy payments. In Plymouth, eligible residents could receive a maximum of £740 in vouchers.

Who is eligible for the DWP Christmas Bonus?

To get a £10 Christmas Bonus, people must be present or ‘ordinarily resident’ in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the qualifying week. This is usually the first week of December.

They must also get at least one of the following benefits in the ‘qualifying week’:

• Adult Disability Payment
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• Attendance Allowance
• Carer’s Allowance
• Carer Support Payment
• Child Disability Payment
• Constant Attendance Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
• Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (once the main phase of the benefit is entered after the first 13 weeks of claim)
• Disability Living Allowance
• Incapacity Benefit at the long-term rate
• Industrial Death Benefit (for widows or widowers)
• Mobility Supplement
• Pension Credit - the guarantee element
• Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
• Severe Disablement Allowance (transitionally protected)
• Unemployability Supplement or Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
• War Disablement Pension at State Pension age
• War Widow’s Pension
• Widowed Mother’s Allowance
• Widowed Parent’s Allowance
• Widow’s Pension