UC Transitional SDP Element Additions
New Legislation, which comes into force on 14th February 2024, introduces an additional monthly amount for claimants entitled to the Transitional SDP Element (TSDPE) AND receiving a Disability Premium, Enhanced Disability Premium or Disabled Child Premium / Element in their legacy benefits in the month before their claim for Universal Credit (UC) who continued to satisfy the eligibility conditions up to and including the first day of their UC award.
The additional monthly amounts (see below) can be added to the standard £132.12, £313.79 or £445.91 TSDPE previously legislated for.
IMPORTANT: This additional payment is part of the TSDPE so can be ‘eroded’ or lost as normal. And erosion will happen almost straight away - due to the April uprating, LHA reset and rent increase time for many.
This measure is in response to a High Court decision made in January 2022 which found that the DWP were not adequately compensating claimants who moved onto UC following a change in circumstances or voluntarily, and had been receiving the Severe Disability Premium in the legacy benefits.
The additional monthly amounts added to the standard TSDPE - for those entitled - from February 2024 will be -
- in the case of a single claimant -
- £84 for those whose legacy benefit included an Enhanced Disability Premium;
- £172 for those whose legacy benefit included a Disability Premium; and
- £177 per disabled child or qualifying young person where the legacy benefit or tax credit included a Disabled Child Premium or Disabled Child Element;
- in the case of joint claimants -
- £120 for those whose legacy benefit included an Enhanced Disability Premium;
- £246 for those whose legacy benefit included a Disability Premium; and
- £177 per disabled child or qualifying young person where the legacy benefit or tax credit included a Disabled Child Premium or Disabled Child Element.
How will it work for new UC claimants?
This protection is only available to those claimants:
- Who are not entitled to a Managed Migration Transitional Element, and
- Who meet the criteria for the Transitional SDP Element - click here.
For these claimants the DWP will need to check whether their legacy benefit award included an Enhanced Disability Premium (for them); a Disability Premium (for them); and/or a Disabled Child Premium or Disabled Child Element (for a child they were still responsible for when they claimed UC).
If they were then the amount of their Transitional SDP Element will be increased to include one or more of these extra amounts.
Example: Ghita claims UC on 2nd March 2024 when she moves into rented accommodation. She was previously getting Income Support that included a Disability Premium and a Severe Disability Premium, and Child Tax Credit that included a Disabled Child Element for her youngest daughter. She meet the conditions for the Transitional SDP Element, so when her UC award is first assessed it will include a Transitional SDP Element of £662.79 ( ie £313.79 + £172 + £177).
Example: Peter claims UC on 1st April 2024 when he moves into rented accommodation. He was previously getting Income-Related ESA that included a WRAG component and Enhanced Disability Premium for him (but no SDP as his sister receives Carers Allowance for looking after him). As he is not entitled to the Transitional SDP Element he will not be entitled to receive any transitional protection even though he may be worse off on UC due to the loss of the Enhanced Disability Premium.
Example: Sasha claims UC on 20th February 2024 when she moves into rented accommodation. She was previously on Income-Related ESA in the Support Group that includes a Support Component, Enhanced Disability Premium and Severe Disability Premium. She meet the conditions for the Transitional SDP Element, so when her UC award is first assessed it will include a Transitional SDP Element of £304.12 ( ie £132.12 + £172).
What about those who moved onto UC before February 2024?
Those that had already moved onto UC efoew 14th February 2024 and entitled to the Transitional SDP Element could also benefit from this increase (this includes claimants whose TSDPE had eroded to nil).
But this is not a retrospective payment so these claimants will only receive it from their first MAP which ends on or after 14th February 2024.
If, since first claiming UC, they have lost entitlement to the TSDPE by any route apart from erosion (click here), then they will not benefit from this change.
Example: Geoff made a claim for UC in Nov 2022 when he moved LA area. His first UC award included a £285 Transitional SDP Element. In February 2024 his UC award still includes a TSDPE although is has now been eroded to £223.67. When he moved on to UC from Income-Related ESA his IR-ESA award also included a Enhanced Disability Premium. The amount of Geoff's Transitional SDP Element should increase from the Assessment Period beginning on or after 14th February by £172.00.
Example: Tanya made a claim for UC in Sept 2021 when she moved LA area. She had previously been on Income Support that included a Disability Premium (but no Severe Disability Premium). Tanya will not be entitled to any transitional protection even though she was worse off on UC due to the loss of the Disability Premium.
Example: Maz made a claim for UC in March 2022 when she had a baby. She had previously been on Income-Related ESA. Her IR-ESA included a Support Component, Severe Disability Premium and Enhanced Disability Premium. Her UC award initially included a Transitional SDP Element this was eroded to nil when she moved to more expensive rented accommodation in July 2022. Although Maz does not have a Transitional SDP Element in her UC award any more - because the reason for this is that it was eroded, and she did have an Enhanced Disability Premium in her IR-ESA award when she moved onto UC, when the DWP assess Maz's UC for the Assessment Period beginning on or after 14th February, it will include a Transitional SDP Element by £172.00.
Example: Tim made a claim for UC in Jan 2022 when he moved LA area. He had previously been on Income-Related ESA. His IR-ESA included a Support Component, Severe Disability Premium and Enhanced Disability Premium. His UC award initially included a Transitional SDP Element but he lost this when his partner moved in with him. Although Tim did have Transitional SDP Element included in his UC award and was getting an Enhanced Disability Premium in his IR-ESA he will not be entitled to any extra from February because he lost the TSDPE when his partner moved in.
Example: Wendy has no health issues, but her daughter gets Middle Rate Care DLA. Wendy was getting Child Tax Credit and Income Support as a carer, when she moved house in August 2022 and claimed UC to help pay her new rent. Wendy will not be entitled to any transitional protection from February 2024. This is because the new element to compensate for the disabled child element being lower in UC than it is in Child Tax Credit is only available to those who were getting an SDP in their legacy benefits.
Something to be aware of - The Regulations allow for the DWP to decide the time and manner in which the new payments are to be paid, so there may be some administrative delays before claimants start receiving their new entitlement after 14 February.
Amending Regulations are available here.
We will be amending the Transitional SDP Element pages of the website to reflect this change.