UK households have received a boost from the Department for Work and Pensions as the Carer's Allowance benefit threshold has been increased to £196. The Carer's Allowance is a benefit given to individuals who care for someone else, such as a family member, for at least 35 hours per week.
This means that those who earn even 1p above the threshold lose their entire allowance, and are required to repay what they have already claimed. However, the DWP has confirmed that it will raise the Carer's Allowance earnings threshold by £45 a week to £196 from April, allowing people to earn significantly more money while still receiving the £81.90 per week.
The National Audit Office has highlighted that the Department for Work and Pensions distributed £3.7 billion in Carer's Allowance to above 900,000 claimants in 2023/24 while identifying a problematic "cliff edge" due to strict rules, where claimants face either full allowance entitlement or none based on immediate reporting of any change in their circumstances. This system, the NAO points out, can lead to significant overpayments.