The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) use the term ‘domestic violence’ to cover domestic violence and abuse (on this page we refer to both as domestic abuse). See the box below for the DWP’s definition of ‘domestic violence’. This definition is also used for housing benefit.
‘Domestic violence’ is defined as any incident, or pattern of incidents, of controlling behaviour, coercive behaviour, violence or abuse including but not limited to:
regardless of the gender or sexuality of the victim.
Some of the help available differs depending on where you live.
In England, if you need to leave your home in an emergency you can apply to your local authority’s local welfare assistance scheme. Not all English local authorities run a local welfare assistance scheme and the rules about eligibility and the level of help available vary between schemes. Check with your local authority whether they run a local welfare assistance scheme and if so, check the details of the scheme they run. Applications are usually online. You may be able to apply for emergency living expenses, the costs of any travel involved in fleeing domestic abuse and/or for the costs of essentials such as white goods if you have had to move in a hurry and need to settle somewhere new.
In Scotland, if you need to leave your home in an emergency you can apply to the Scottish Welfare Fund for a crisis grant for living expenses. You can also apply for a community care grant for other needs such as travelling expenses or household items if you are moving into a new home, and are facing exceptional pressures due to domestic abuse. To get a grant you must normally be on a low income or have no income. You don't need to be getting particular benefits although this might help establish that your income is low. You must apply to your local authority for a crisis grant and/or community care grant from the Scottish Welfare Fund.
In Wales, if you need to leave your home in an emergency you can apply to the Discretionary Assistance Fund for an Emergency Assistance Payment. If you get certain means-tested benefits, you can also apply for an Individual Assistance Payment to help you set up a home or to ease exceptional pressure. Applications to the Discretionary Assistance Fund can be made online, or by post or phone. You may be able to apply for help with things like emergency living expenses, help with the costs of any travel involved in fleeing domestic abuse and/or for help with the getting essentials such as white goods if you have had to move in a hurry and need to settle somewhere new.
Whether you live in England, Scotland or Wales, you should also claim any benefits you are eligible for and can request an advance payment of that benefit if you need it.
For more information, see:
Local Welfare Assistance Finder on endfurniturepoverty.org.
Scottish Welfare Fund - help with living costs on mygov.scot
Discretionary Assistance Fund on gov.wales
Universal credit (UC) is a working-age, means-tested benefit, payable whether you are in or out of work. The amount you get depends on your circumstances. For example, it can include amounts for children, childcare costs and housing. If you have fled domestic abuse and have a low income, you will usually have to claim UC if you are not already getting it.
UC has replaced income support, income-based jobseeker’s allowance, child tax credit and working tax credit and is in the process of replacing income-related employment and support allowance (ESA) and, except for people in certain kinds of supported or temporary accommodation, working-age housing benefit. The benefits UC replaces are known as 'legacy benefits'.
It’s now not possible to make a new claim for a legacy benefit and at some time in 2025, people still getting income-related ESA and working-age housing benefit will undergo 'managed migration' to UC. This means they will be sent a 'migration notice' telling them a date when their legacy benefit will be stopped and inviting them to claim UC in its place.
If you are getting a legacy benefit and you haven't had a migration notice from the DWP, get advice before claiming UC. In almost all circumstances, claiming UC will end your award of legacy benefits.
UC is usually paid monthly in arrears. Payment is made for each monthly assessment period, normally a week after the end of the assessment period. This means you may wait five weeks for your first UC payment. You can request a short-term advance if you are in financial hardship – this can be up to 100% of your estimated entitlement, and is usually repaid from your future payments over 24 months. In Scotland, you can ask for your UC to be paid twice a month, and for the amount for rent to go direct to your landlord. In some circumstances, in England and Wales it may be possible to have payments more frequently than once a month and for the amount for rent to go direct to your landlord but such ‘alternative payment arrangements’ are discretionary.
A change of circumstances normally takes effect from the start of a monthly assessment period. If you were previously getting UC as a couple, and have separated from your former partner, you must notify the DWP of the change in your circumstances. You can do this on your online UC account (but be aware that until your account is unlinked from your ex-partner’s, your ex-partner may be able to see information you add to your UC account) or by ringing the UC helpline. Usually, you'll be paid as a single person (or single parent) for the whole of the monthly assessment period in which you left your former partner, and your claim continues to run on the same monthly assessment period as before. If UC was being paid into your former partner’s account, it is vital that you notify the DWP of your own account details before your first payment is due. Get advice if you are having problems opening a bank or building society account.
Most UC claimants are subject to work-related requirements, such as attending work-focused interviews if your youngest child is aged one, and preparing for work if your youngest child is aged two, and if your youngest child is aged three or over, you are normally also required to satisfy a work search and work availability requirement, but can agree limitations on hours of work. If your youngest child is aged three to 12, you may be expected to be available for and look for work for up to 30 hours a week, if this is compatible with your caring responsibilities, and suitable childcare is available. You might be sanctioned if you don't comply with your work-related requirements without good reason. If you are given a sanction, your benefit is paid at a reduced (or sometimes nil) rate for a set period.
If you have experienced or been threatened with domestic abuse by your partner, former partner, or a family member within the last six months, you shouldn't be subject to any work-related requirements for a period of 13 weeks from the time you notify the DWP of this. For this to apply, you must provide the DWP with evidence of the abuse from a person acting in an official capacity, such as the police or a social worker. This exception to the work-related requirements can only be applied once in any 12-month period. If you're responsible for a child under 16, you shouldn't have to be available for or look for work for a further 13 weeks (so for 26 weeks in total), but may be required to attend work-focused interviews or prepare for work (however, UC guidance indicates that the DWP may agree to not impose any work-related requirements for 26 weeks in total).
If you are responsible for a child under 16 who has been a victim of, or witness to, violence or abuse, or has been affected by the death of a family member in the last two years, and this has disrupted your normal childcare responsibilities, you can be allowed a month in which you don't have to look for work or be available for work. This can be allowed once in each six-month period in the two years following the event. However, if the incident is the same episode of domestic violence for which you have been allowed the period of 13 or 26 weeks described in the above paragraph, the month runs at the same time.
For more detailed information on work-related requirements see
Work-related requirements if you have recently experienced domestic abuse.
No child element is included in your UC for a child born on or after 6 April 2017 if you already get child elements for two or more other children. This is known as the ‘two-child limit’. There are some exceptions to the two-child limit. For example, an exception applies if the child was likely to have been conceived as a result of rape or in a controlling or coercive relationship and you aren't, or are no longer, living at the same address as the perpetrator.
A controlling or coercive relationship includes behaviour which caused you to fear, on at least two occasions, that violence would be used against you, or that caused you serious alarm or distress which had a substantial adverse effect on your day-to-day activities. You must provide evidence from an ‘approved person’ confirming that you had contact with them or another ‘approved person’ about the rape or coercive or controlling relationship. A list of who counts as an ‘approved person’ is set out in 'Approved third party professionals who can complete these forms' on gov. uk, and includes healthcare professionals, social workers and support workers from certain approved organisations. This third-party evidence isn't needed if there has been a conviction for the offence of rape or coercive or controlling behaviour in the UK, or a similar offence abroad, or if you have been awarded criminal injuries compensation in respect of a sexual offence, physical abuse or mental injury, and it is likely that the offence or injury resulted in the conception.
For more detailed information on this exception to the two-child limit see:
Exceptions to the two-child limit
If you have left your home due to domestic abuse and you move into a refuge provided by a local authority, housing association, charity or voluntary organisation, or are placed in temporary homeless accommodation, you can get UC for yourself, but you must claim housing benefit from your local authority to get help with your housing costs. If you move into a standard tenancy of your own, UC can include an amount for your rent.
If you or a member of your household have been subject to domestic abuse, or been threatened with it, and you're living in social rented property that has been adapted under the ‘sanctuary scheme’ (which is a scheme to provide additional security in the home) your housing benefit or your UC housing costs element isn't reduced if you have more bedrooms than you are thought to need (ie, the bedroom tax does not apply to you). For the bedroom tax not to apply, you normally must not be living with the perpetrator, and you must provide evidence from someone acting in an ‘official capacity’ (see below).
If you are a private tenant, the amount of help you get with your rent is normally based on the ‘local housing allowance’ for a property with the number of bedrooms you are thought to need given the size of your family. This is often lower than the amount of your rent. If you are aged under 35, are single and don't have either any children for whom you are responsible or non-dependants living with you, the usual rule is that the amount of help you get with your rent is based on the local housing allowance for one-bedroomed shared accommodation. This is usually less than the local housing allowance for a one-bedroomed property. However, there are exceptions to this rule.
One exception applies to people who have experienced domestic abuse. The help you get with your rent is based on the local housing allowance for a one-bedroomed property rather than one-bedroomed shared accommodation if:
In both situations the evidence from someone acting in an official capacity (eg, a healthcare professional, the police, a registered social worker, a public, voluntary or charitable body) should confirm that you've been in contact with them about the domestic abuse and that your circumstances are consistent with someone who has experienced or been threatened with domestic abuse. If your property has been adapted under the sanctuary scheme, the evidence should also confirm this.
Note: the local housing allowance rules don't apply in some circumstances, including if you live in certain kinds of temporary or supported accommodation.
If you have fled your home due to fear of violence but intend to return – for example, once you have obtained an occupation order (in England or Wales) or an exclusion order (in Scotland), you can continue to receive housing benefit or the UC housing element for that home for up to 52 weeks of a temporary absence. In this situation, if you are in a refuge or temporary homeless accommodation, you can get housing benefit for your temporary home as well as continuing to get housing benefit or the UC housing element for the home you are temporarily away from.
UC and working-age housing benefit can be reduced if your total income from certain ‘specified benefits’ is more than the ‘benefit cap’. The benefit cap is:
In some circumstances the benefit cap doesn't apply, including if:
For UC, the benefit cap also may not apply if you work and your net earnings in your UC monthly assessment period are at at least £793, or in some circumstances if you are in a nine-month ‘grace period’ after either stopping work or after your earnings have reduced.
For working-age housing benefit, the benefit cap may not apply if you are in a 39-week ‘grace period’ after stopping work.
‘Specified benefits’ include JSA, ESA (unless you are in the ESA support group), child benefit and maternity allowance. If you are claiming UC, it is also a specified benefit. If you are claiming housing benefit, housing benefit (unless it is for ‘specified accommodation’) is also a specified benefit.
The benefit cap is most likely to affect you if you have a large family or are living in accommodation with a high rent.
If you are staying in a refuge, the housing benefit you get for this type of accommodation doesn't count towards the benefit cap, so your housing benefit can cover the higher charges usually associated with the additional support and security provided. If you are getting housing benefit on two homes under the rule described above, you may be affected by the benefit cap.
For further information on the benefit cap, see in our Welfare Benefits Handbook:
and on gov.uk:
Child benefit is usually paid to the person responsible for the child. If you weren't the child benefit claimant before fleeing domestic abuse, make a new claim for the child or children you are responsible for. It can take several weeks to change claimants, unless your former partner agrees to withdraw their claim.
If you opted not to receive your child benefit due to the ‘high income child benefit charge’ because your former partner’s income was over £60,000 a year, and your income is less than this, ask for your child benefit payment to be reinstated once you have separated.
If you have separated from your partner and you are over pension age, you can claim pension credit as a single person. Pension credit is a means-tested benefit for people over pension age. You are allowed more to live on, aren't required to look for work and can't be sanctioned. If you have children, an additional amount for each child can be included in your pension credit. If you need help with rent, you can claim housing benefit.
If you have separated from your former partner and you get UC, income-related ESA, or housing benefit, your award isn't affected by your former partner’s income. Any payment of child maintenance you receive is ignored when working out your entitlement to these benefits. If you receive spousal maintenance, this counts as your income and does affect your entitlement.
If you have left a property which you owned or jointly owned, the value of the property can be ignored for at least six months following a relationship breakdown, or for longer in other circumstances – for example, if your former partner still lives in it and is a lone parent, or if you are taking legal advice to return to the property or taking steps to sell your share. For more information, see
Value of property and its effects on means-tested benefits
Use our online tool to find out whether the value of your property can be ignored for UC, and to generate a note to explain your circumstances to add to your UC journal:
Can the value of your property be disregarded?
If you had a joint bank or building society account with your former partner, you will need to open an individual account in your own name to receive payments of benefits. You may be treated as having a 50 per cent share of jointly held savings, but if you are unable to access a joint account due to domestic abuse, you should argue that the value is nil for means-tested benefits. You should also seek legal advice on gaining access to your share, and on other financial issues.
People from abroad, depending on their immigration status, may find that their rights to claim benefits are limited, and should seek specialist advice.
If you entered the UK as the partner of a British citizen or settled person and have fled domestic violence, you may be entitled to claim benefits under a special concession. If you have ‘no recourse to public funds’ as a condition on your stay in the UK, this concession allows you access to public funds so that you aren't at risk. You can apply for a 'migrant victims of domestic abuse concession' from the Home Office to allow you limited access to benefits for three months. However, it’s essential to get immigration advice on your individual circumstances before you do this because it may not be the best immigration option for you.
Although, in some circumstances, you can apply for indefinite leave to remain in the UK due to domestic abuse, specialist immigration advice will help you assess if this is the best course of action. In some circumstances, if you have leave as a partner of a person with leave in the UK as a worker, student, or graduate, or if you have been granted pre-settled status on the basis of your relationship (that began before 31 December 2020) which has broken down due to domestic abuse or domestic violence, you may also be eligible for this concession but it is essential you get immigration advice before applying.
If you are unsure if you qualify for benefit because of your immigration status, use our tools (for subscribers):
Do you have a right to reside?
Are you a ‘person subject to immigration control’?
Domestic abuse: how to get help
Domestic violence and abuse: help from DWP
Our Welfare Benefits Handbook is a comprehensive guide to benefits for claimants and advisers which is available in print or online (for subscribers).
The Early Warning System gathers information and case studies about how changes to the benefit system are affecting the wellbeing of children, families and the communities and services that support them. This helps us explain the impact on families and work for improvements in the system, to deliver better outcomes for children.
If you are in immediate danger: phone 999
A federation of frontline domestic abuse services, supporting women and children
Tel: 0808 2000 247 (Freephone, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week)
Online chat: nationaldahelpline.org.uk/Chat-to-us-online
Help and support for male victims of domestic violence
Help and support for LGBT+ people who have experienced domestic abuse
