Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction - change of circumstance

What is a change of circumstances?

A change of circumstances is any change which may affect the amount of Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction you receive. The list below provides details of some examples which might affect your entitlement to benefit:

• a change in your earnings
• a change in income of someone who lives with you
• a change to state benefits
• someone moving into or out of your home
• a member of your household is admitted to hospital
• a change in address
• a change in the amount of rent you pay

The above are only examples.

Council tenants must also notify their local Housing office of any changes to their household occupants. Further information is available on our Changing your tenancy pages.

Why is it so important to tell you about a change in my circumstances?

If we pay you too much benefit because you did not tell us about a change straight away, you will have to pay back any overpaid benefit. For further information on overpaid benefit, see our section on Housing Benefit - overpayments.