We can impose civil penalties and council tax penalties on households which fail, without reasonable excuse, to inform us of a change in circumstance that results in an overpayment.
It is important that you report all changes that could affect your benefit as soon as the change happens.
Examples of things you must tell us include if:
- your address changes
- your income or capital changes
- you come off job seekers allowance or income support
- your child tax credit changes
- your working tax credit changes
- you start work or change jobs
- you or your partner go into hospital
- anyone joins or leaves your household
- a child leaves school
This is not a full list and if you are unsure whether a change in your circumstances will affect your benefit, contact us for advice. You must give us full details about the change in your circumstances including the date the change occurred.
How to notify us
You can tell us about a change in circumstances using Citizen Access Benefits.
You should follow the instructions on screen to create an online key which you will be sent by email and then once entered you can access your details.
You can then start the change in circumstances form.
The form takes between 10 and 20 minutes to fill in.
You need to have your personal and change details ready.
You can upload scanned or photo evidence of your change.
What happens next
You will receive email confirmation that you have submitted the form.
We aim to implement the change in your benefit claim within 10 working days if we have received all evidence required.
We will contact you by email or phone if we need more evidence. Make sure that you have provided up to date contact details on your claim.
This will not be done by post and you will need to access your My Benefits account.
If you already sent us a change of circumstances
If you have already let us know about your change of circumstances, you may want to:
- upload extra evidence
- view your benefit information online
Going back to work doesn’t mean giving up all your benefits
Did you know that you may still get benefit when you go back to work?
Almost everyone can be better off in work. You may also be able to claim up to 4 weeks housing benefit and council tax reduction at the same level you were getting before your circumstances changed. This is called an extended payment.
Visit GOV.UK - support when you start working for more information.