Universal Credit Migration Notice - Migration Notices

People getting legacy benefits are having their claims transferred to Universal Credit. This is called managed migration .

Legacy benefits are Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit, Housing Benefit for working-age people, income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), income-based Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) and Income Support.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have started sending out notices to people getting tax credits, either just tax credits, or tax credits with other benefits to move onto Universal Credit. This year (2024) more notices will be sent to people claiming other legacy benefits . People who get ESA only, or ESA with housing benefit only will also start getting notices. All migration notices are expected to be sent by the end of December 2025. 

Look out for a letter called a ‘Universal Credit Migration Notice’ from the DWP. Tax Credit claimants will receive this letter from the DWP with a HMRC logo or from the Department for Communities if they live in Northern Ireland. This notice letter is important as it will tell you that your existing benefits are stopping, and you need to make a claim for Universal Credit. It will also tell you what you need to do and by when.

You might get a leaflet telling you to get ready for Universal Credit – if the letter you get doesn't have a deadline on it, it isn't your migration notice. Wait until you get a proper migration notice.