UNIVERSAL credit can be easily tracked on your online account allowing you to keep up to date with your claims.
Combining payments into one monthly sum can simplify benefits for hundreds in the UK and the online system makes starting an application easy if you’re not already using the scheme.
There are lots of benefits to checking your online claims account and we have all the information on how to get you started.
How do you log in to Universal Credit?
You can see your Universal Credit account online by logging into your account on GOV.UK.
Users need their username and password to log in – it’s the same one you will have had to set up when you first applied for benefits.
The website will give you a reminder if you’re not sure of the details.
If you have an online Universal Credit account, you can also sign in with GOV.UK Verify
If you’re still struggling, try calling the Universal Credit Helpline on 0800 328 5644 (Textphone: 0800 328 1344).
You can also get it contact via NGT text relay on 18001 then 0800 328 5644.
There’s a Welsh language helpline available on 0800 328 1744
What are the benefits to having an online account?
The credit account is called an Online Journal and it can help you apply for an advance on your first payment.
This can help plug the five-week wait between applying and receiving the benefit.
The service also allows you to see your statement, report a change in circumstances, add a note to your to-do list and find out when your next payment will be.
And you can send messages to your work coach and read messages they send you as well as keep a record of the things you’ve done to prepare or look for work.
The page will also contain your Claimant Commitment which is what you agree to in order to access the benefit and you can check this whenever you need.
keep a record of the things you’ve done to prepare or look for work
You may be able to use the Universal Credit online service to make a claim or join your partner’s claim.
How to know if you need Universal Credit?
The government initiative combines payments for a number of benefits into one monthly amount.
It replaces: Child Tax Credit, Housing Benefit, Income Support, Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Working Tax Credit.
People who are already receiving these benefits will be rolled onto the latest system between now and 2024.
If the Department for Work and Pensions contacts you to say you are being moved over, you should also set up the digital account.
The payment is made up of a standard allowance and any extra amounts that apply to you, for example if you:
- have children
- have a disability or health condition which prevents you from working
- need help paying your rent
You can use a benefits calculator to see how much you could get.
Find out more about what Universal Credit is and whether you might be eligible for a claim.
The more you earn the less you’ll get, because of the taper system – here’s how it works.
Universal Credit claimants often struggle with the five-week wait for payments, but now you can get an advance.
