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Universal Credit Payments to Households with Foreign Nationals Reach £941 Million

Officials link the rise to record net migration with more refugee status grants, prompting consideration of higher NHS charges alongside extended residency requirements.

Protesters hold placards during a 'Enough is Enough' demonstration called by far-right activists near a hotel housing asylum seekers in Aldershot on August 4, 2024. Far-right protesters clashed with British police during tense rallies as unrest linked to disinformation about a mass stabbing that killed three young girls spread across the UK. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
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More benefits are being paid to households that have a foreign citizen, a freedom of information request has revealed

Overview

  • DWP data show households with at least one foreign national claimed £941 million in Universal Credit in March 2025, up from £461 million in March 2022 and accounting for 15.5% of the £6.05 billion total.
  • Experts attribute the surge to a record net migration flow and a rise in asylum seekers being granted refugee status, which confers benefit eligibility.
  • A leaked memo from Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner urged the Chancellor to tighten migrant access to Universal Credit by raising NHS surcharges and restricting pension entitlements.
  • Sir Keir Starmer has unveiled plans to extend the wait for indefinite leave to remain from five to ten years and to raise skilled worker visa requirements to reduce net migration.
  • Analysts note that two months of benefit payments to foreign households offset the £1.4 billion saved by scrapping winter fuel payments, intensifying scrutiny of welfare budgets.