Households across the UK are being urged to look for a five-letter code on their bank statements from Monday. The code is for a Christmas Bonus payment being issued by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in the first week of December. The one-off tax free payment is worth £10 and is paid automatically to eligible households in receipt of at least one of 24 qualifying benefits. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you don’t need to do anything to claim the money as the DWP will issue this to you automatically.
The DWP has confirmed that the Christmas Bonus is normally paid in the first full week of December, which this year is from Monday, December 1 to Sunday, December 7. As such, it is expected that the payment should arrive in your bank account between these dates if you are eligible, and it will be identifiable on your bank statement by the code ‘DWP XB’.
To get a Christmas Bonus, you must be present or ‘ordinarily resident’ in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the qualifying week, which is the first full week of December.
If you haven’t claimed your State Pension and you’re not entitled to one of the qualifying benefits then you won’t get the £10 payment.
The full list of qualifying benefits for the Christmas Bonus include:
- Adult Disability Payment
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Attendance Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Carer Support Payment
- Child Disability Payment
- Constant Attendance Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (once the main phase of the benefit is entered after the first 13 weeks of claim)
- Disability Living Allowance
- Incapacity Benefit at the long-term rate
- Industrial Death Benefit (for widows or widowers)
- Mobility Supplement
- Pension Age Disability Payment
- Pension Credit – the guarantee element
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance (SADLA)
- Severe Disablement Allowance (transitionally protected)
- State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
- Unemployability Supplement or Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- War Disablement Pension at State Pension age
- War Widow’s Pension
- Widowed Mother’s Allowance
- Widowed Parent’s Allowance
- Widow’s Pension
If you’re a married couple, in a civil partnership, or living together as if you are, and you both receive at least one of the above qualifying benefits, then you will each get a Christmas Bonus payment from the DWP.
If your partner doesn’t get one of the qualifying benefits, they may still be eligible for the payment if both of the following apply:
- you’re both over State Pension age by the end of the qualifying week
- your partner or civil partner was also present (or ‘ordinarily resident’) in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, Gibraltar, European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland during the qualifying week
One of the following must also apply:
- you’re entitled to an increase of a qualifying benefit for your partner or civil partner
- the only qualifying benefit you’re getting is Pension Credit
If you think you’re entitled to the £10 Christmas Bonus but you haven’t received it by January 1 then you should contact the Jobcentre Plus office that deals with your payments or the Pension Service.
