The DWP is set to issue a 10 Christmas bonus to millions of pensioners and benefit claimants in the first week of December and it hasn’t changed since the scheme was launched in 1972
Millions of pensioners and benefit claimants will receive a £10 Christmas bonus from the DWP next month – the same amount paid when the scheme was launched 53 years ago. The tax-free payment, due to arrive automatically in the first week of December, will be made to anyone claiming the State Pension or certain other qualifying benefits. It will appear in bank accounts with the reference “DWP XB” or “XB”.
There’s no need to apply, but recipients must meet eligibility criteria during the first full week of December, set this year for December 1 to 7. The £10 bonus was first introduced in 1972 as a one-off payment by the Conservative government, then made a permanent annual fixture in 1977 – but it has never been increased in more than half a century.
If it had risen in line with prices, that tenner, which would have bought one week’s worth of groceries for a family of four, would now be worth around £165. Critics say the frozen payment highlights how benefits have failed to keep pace with rising costs.
The payout will come just days after Rachel Reeves delivers her Autumn Budget on November 26, which the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned is “almost certainly” going to involve tax rises.
The DWP said: “If you have not claimed your State Pension and are not entitled to one of the other qualifying benefits you will not get a Christmas bonus.”
Couples who both qualify will each receive £10, while partners who do not receive a qualifying benefit may still get the payment if certain conditions are met – including being over State Pension age and resident in the UK or specified territories during the qualifying week.
Who qualifies for the £10 Christmas bonus
You must be ‘ordinarily resident’ in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the qualifying week, and receive at least one of the following benefits:
- State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
- Pension Credit (guarantee element)
- Attendance Allowance
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Disability Living Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Industrial Injuries or War Pensions benefits (including Constant Attendance Allowance or Unemployability Supplement)
- War Widow’s or War Disablement Pension
- Severe Disablement Allowance
- Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (main phase)
- Widowed Parent’s or Widow’s Pension
- Incapacity Benefit (long-term rate)
And equivalent Scottish payments such as Adult Disability Payment or Pension Age Disability Payment.
When it will be paid
The DWP is expected to start payments in the first week of December, in line with previous years. Exact dates will be confirmed later this month.
