DWP confirms exact date of birth you need to receive 2025 winter fuel payment
DWP confirms exact date of birth you need to receive 2025 winter fuel payment
Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed that millions of people who had the benefit axed last winter will get it this year
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has confirmed more people will get the winter fuel payment
(Image: Carl Court, Getty Images )
The Department for Work and Pensions has confirmed that individuals born before a specific date will be eligible for the winter fuel payment this year. The Gov.uk website has been updated with preliminary details following Chancellor Rachel Reeves' announcement that nine million people who lost the £200-300 benefit last winter will receive it this year.
Those earning over £35,000 will also receive the payment, but it will subsequently be reclaimed through the tax system. Sir Keir Starmer has maintained that the decision to restore most winter fuel payments was not a reaction to political backlash against the policy.
Following the announcement, the DWP has updated its information and confirmed who will be eligible for the payment.
DWP officials stated that only those born before a certain date would receive the money. They said: "The Winter Fuel Payment for 2025 to 2026 will be made to everyone in England and Wales born before 22 September 1959, unless you choose not to get it.
"You could get either £200 or £300 to help you pay your heating bills for winter. You do not need to do anything - payments will be made automatically," reports Teesside Live.
Officials confirmed that everyone will receive the money, but cautioned those earning above a certain threshold that it would be recouped through HMRC, though they did not provide specifics on how this would occur.
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It stated: "If your income is over £35,000, your Winter Fuel Payment will be recovered later through HMRC. Details of the 2025 to 2026 payment will be available by the end of June 2025."
Warnings have been issued this week about "fiscal drag" resulting from the £35,000 earnings threshold, which could see numerous individuals lose their winter fuel payment during this parliament. This follows confirmation from Ms Reeves that the £35,000 limit will not adjust in line with inflation, potentially affecting an additional 500,000 people before the parliament concludes.
BBC Moneybox expert Paul Lewis commented: "The £35,000 income limit for keeping the winter fuel payment will be frozen Ministers confirm, leading to more pensioners repaying the money year by year it will join frozen bereavement payments, capital limits, child benefit limits, and tax thresholds."
The Prime Minister highlighted recent growth figures and declining interest rates as evidence that "the economy has stabilised".
Ms Reeves recognised that working individuals might not yet perceive the signs of economic progress, as she aimed to shift focus from the winter fuel controversy by asserting that her forthcoming spending review would promote growth.
"This government is going for growth because that is the best way to create jobs, boost wages, lift people out of poverty and sustainably fund our schools and our hospitals and all the public services we rely on," she declared at the GMB Union Congress conference.
While highlighting that the government was "making progress", Ms Reeves commented: "I know that not enough working people are yet feeling that progress, and that's what [last week's] spending review is all about - making working people better off, investing in our security, investing in our health, investing in our economy."
Rachel Reeves did not dismiss the possibility of additional tax hikes come autumn. This comes as new data indicated the economy contracted more sharply than forecasted in April.
The Chancellor has consistently asserted that her last year's tax increases have sufficiently funded the spending review outcome, emphasising that departments must now "live within their means".
Economists are cautioning that due to a potential economic downturn, coupled with new obligations such as partially reversing reductions to winter fuel payments, further tax rises seem probable this coming autumn.
Queried about the likelihood of more tax increments, Ms Reeves told LBC: "I think it would be very risky for a Chancellor to try and write future budgets in a world as uncertain as ours."
Nonetheless, she restated her pledge that any tax changes wouldn't mirror last year's steep £40 billion increase. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here .
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