Winter Fuel Payment

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1. Overview

If you were born before 25 September 1957 you could get between £250 and £600 to help you pay your heating bills. This is known as a ‘Winter Fuel Payment’.

The amount you get includes a ‘Pensioner Cost of Living Payment’. This is between £150 and £300. You’ll get this extra amount in winter 2023 to 2024. This is in addition to any other Cost of Living Payments you get with your benefit or tax credits.

This guide is also available in Welsh (Cymraeg) and British Sign Language (BSL).

Most people get the Winter Fuel Payment automatically if they’re eligible.

If you’re eligible, you should have had a letter in October or November saying how much you’ll get.

If you did not get a letter but you think you’re eligible, check if you need to make a claim.

Most eligible people were paid in November or December. Find out what to do if you have not been paid.

Other help with heating bills

You could also get:

  • a Cold Weather Payment - if you get certain benefits and the temperature drops to zero degrees celsius or below for 7 days in a row
  • the Warm Home Discount - this is a £150 discount on your bills if you get Pension Credit or live in a low-income household
  • help from the Household Support Fund, if you’re eligible under your local council’s rules - check on your local council’s website

2. Eligibility

You can get a Winter Fuel Payment if you were born before 25 September 1957.

You usually need to live in the UK. In some circumstances, you might be eligible if you live abroad.

When you will not be eligible

You will not be eligible if you:

  • have been in hospital getting free treatment for more than a year
  • need permission to enter the UK and your granted leave says that you cannot claim public funds
  • were in prison for the whole of the week of 18 to 24 September 2023

If you live in a care home

You can get Winter Fuel Payment if you live in a care home. You will not be eligible if both of the following apply:

  • you get Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
  • you lived in a care home for the whole time from 26 June to 24 September 2023

3. How much you'll get

You should have had a letter in October or November telling you how much Winter Fuel Payment you’ll get, if you’re eligible. 

If you did not get a letter but think you are eligible, check if you need to make a claim.

The amount you get is based on when you were born and your circumstances between 18 to 24 September 2023. This is called the ‘qualifying week’.

The amounts listed include a ‘Pensioner Cost of Living Payment’. This is between £150 and £300. You’ll get this extra amount in winter 2023 to 2024.

Any money you get is tax-free and will not affect your other benefits.

If you live alone or no one you live with is eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment

You’ll get either:

  • £500 if you were born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957
  • £600 if you were born before 25 September 1943

If you live with someone else who’s eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment

Your payment may be different if you get one of the following benefits:

  • Pension Credit
  • income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
  • income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
  • Income Support

If you do not get any of the benefits

You’ll get a payment of either:

  • £250 if you and the person you live with were both born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957
  • £250 if you were born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957 but the person you live with was born before 25 September 1943
  • £350 if you were born before 25 September 1943 but the person you live with was born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957
  • £300 if you and the person you live with were both born before 25 September 1943

If you and your partner jointly claim any of the benefits

One of you will get a payment of either:

  • £500 if both of you were born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957
  • £600 if one or both of you were born before 25 September 1943

You’ll be paid into the bank account your benefits are usually paid into.

If you get any of the benefits (not as part of a joint claim)

You’ll get a payment of either:

  • £500 if you were born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957
  • £600 if you were born before 25 September 1943

If you live in a care home

If you’re eligible you’ll get either:

  • £250 if you were born between 25 September 1943 and 24 September 1957
  • £300 if you were born before 25 September 1943

4. Check if you need to claim

Most people get the Winter Fuel Payment automatically if they’re eligible.

You do not need to claim if you get any of the following:

  • State Pension
  • Pension Credit
  • Attendance Allowance
  • Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
  • Carers Allowance
  • Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
  • Income Support
  • income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
  • income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
  • awards from the War Pensions Scheme
  • Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
  • Incapacity Benefit
  • Industrial Death Benefit

If you do not get any of these, you need to claim if either of the following apply:

  • you’ve not got the Winter Fuel Payment before
  • you’ve deferred your State Pension since your last Winter Fuel Payment

You might need to claim if you live abroad even if you do get one of these benefits.

How to claim

You can claim Winter Fuel Payment by:

  • post - from 18 September 2023
  • phone - from 4 October 2023

There’s a different way to claim if you live abroad.

The deadline for you to make a claim for winter 2023 to 2024 is 31 March 2024.

Claim by post

Fill in a Winter Fuel Payment claim form for UK residents and send it to the Winter Fuel Payment Centre.

Winter Fuel Payment Centre
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 1LR

Claim by phone

Call the Winter Fuel Payment Centre to claim by phone.

Winter Fuel Payment Centre
Email enquiry form
Telephone: 0800 731 0160
Textphone: contact Relay UK on 18001 then 0800 731 0160
British Sign Language (BSL) video relay service if you’re on a computer - find out how to use the service on mobile or tablet
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
Find out about call charges

What to prepare before you call

Before you call, you will need to know:

  • your National Insurance number
  • your bank or building society details
  • the date you were married or entered into a civil partnership (if appropriate)

Payments cannot be made into a National Savings and Investments (NS&I) account unless you already get other benefits paid into the account.

You’ll also need to say whether during the qualifying week of 18 to 24 September 2023 you were:

  • in hospital getting free in-patient treatment
  • in a residential care home or Ilford Park Resettlement Home
  • in prison

If you disagree with a decision

You can challenge a decision about your claim. This is called asking for mandatory reconsideration.

5. When you'll get paid

Most payments are made automatically in November or December.

You should have had a letter telling you:

  • how much you’ll get
  • which bank account it will be paid into - this is usually the same account as your State Pension or other benefits

If you did not get a letter or the money has not been paid into your account by 26 January 2024, contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre.

6. If you live abroad

If you do not live in the UK, you’re only eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment if:

  • you moved to an eligible country before 1 January 2021
  • you were born before 25 September 1957
  • you have a genuine and sufficient link to the UK - this can include having lived or worked in the UK, and having family in the UK

Eligible countries

  • Austria
  • Belgium
  • Bulgaria
  • Croatia
  • Czech Republic
  • Denmark
  • Estonia
  • Finland
  • Germany
  • Hungary
  • Iceland
  • Ireland
  • Italy
  • Latvia
  • Liechtenstein
  • Lithuania
  • Luxembourg
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Poland
  • Romania
  • Slovakia
  • Slovenia
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland

When to claim

You only need to claim Winter Fuel Payment if you’ve not got it since you moved abroad.

The rest of the time, you’ll get the payment automatically.

How to claim

You can claim Winter Fuel Payment by:

  • post - from 18 September 2023
  • phone - from 4 October 2023

The deadline for you to make a claim for winter 2023 to 2024 is 31 March 2024.

Claim by post

You’ll need to download and fill in:

  • a Winter Fuel Payment claim form
  • form IPCF091, if you’re a UK national or UK dual national living in an eligible country other than Ireland

Download the forms.

Send your completed forms to the following address.

Winter Fuel Payment Centre
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 1ZU
UK

Claim by phone

Call the Winter Fuel Payment Centre to claim by phone.

Winter Fuel Payment Centre
Email enquiry form
Telephone: +44 (0)191 218 7777
Textphone: contact Relay UK on +44 (0)151 494 2022 then 0800 731 0160
British Sign Language (BSL) video relay service if you’re on a computer - find out how to use the service on mobile or tablet
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
Find out about call charges

What to prepare before you call

Before you call, you will need to know:

  • your National Insurance number
  • your bank or building society details
  • your BIC and IBAN numbers
  • the date you were married or entered into a civil partnership (if appropriate)

Payments cannot be made into a National Savings and Investments (NS&I) account unless you already get other benefits paid into the account.

You’ll also need to say whether during the qualifying week of 18 to 24 September 2023 you were:

  • in hospital getting free in-patient treatment
  • in a residential care home or Ilford Park Resettlement Home
  • in prison

If you disagree with a decision

You can challenge a decision about your claim. This is called asking for mandatory reconsideration.

7. Report a change or cancel your payment

Contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre if you’re eligible for a Winter Fuel Payment and you:

  • need to report a change of circumstances
  • need to change your address or personal details
  • want to cancel future payments
  • want to return a payment

Report any change of circumstances as soon as possible - for example, if you stop getting a benefit, move house or move into a care home. These can affect how much Winter Fuel Payment you get.

If you cancel your payments, you can change this at any time.

Contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre

When you contact the payment centre, you’ll need to tell them your personal details like:

You can either call the helpline or send a letter by post.

If you’re in the UK

Telephone: 0800 731 0160
Textphone: contact Relay UK on 18001 then 0800 731 0160
British Sign Language (BSL) video relay service if you’re on a computer - find out how to use the service on mobile or tablet
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
Find out about call charges

Winter Fuel Payment Centre
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 1LR

If you’re outside the UK

Telephone: +44 (0)191 218 7777
Textphone: contact Relay UK on +44 (0)151 494 2022 then 0800 731 0160
British Sign Language (BSL) video relay service if you’re on a computer - find out how to use the service on mobile or tablet
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
Find out about call charges

Winter Fuel Payment Centre
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 1ZU
UK

If you’ve been paid too much

You may have to repay the money if you:

  • did not report a change straight away
  • gave wrong information
  • were overpaid by mistake

Find out how to repay the money you owe from benefit overpayment.