DWP Christmas bonus 2024 – who’s eligible, when it’s paid and why it’s still £10

Christmas is the most expensive time of the year for many with funds stretched to meet expectations for the season of goodwill from gifts and cards to family parties and festive outings.

For those who rely on the State Pension and benefits, the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) is providing a financial Christmas bonus to help.

But it has been criticized recently for not rising in line with inflation.

We take a look at the details from who gets it and when to whether it will increase in value.

What is the DWP Christmas Bonus and who can get it?

The Christmas bonus is a one-off tax-free payment of £10 from the DWP. It is paid to people who claim certain benefits and meet certain criteria.

To receive it, applicants must be present or “ordinarily resident” in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the qualifying week, usually the first full week of December.

And they must also receive at least one of the following benefits during the qualifying week.

• Adult disability payment
• Defense independence payment
• Attendance allowance
• Care assistance
• Carer Support Payment
• Child disability payment
• Supplement for constant attendance
• Contributory employment and support benefit
• Disability allowance
• Long-term disability benefit
• Industrial death benefit (for widows or widowers)
• Mobility allowance
• Retirement age Disability payment
• Pension credit – the guarantee element
• Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• State pension (including graduated pension benefit)
• Severe disability allowance (transitionally protected)
• Unemployment allowance or daily allowance
• War invalid pension at public pension age
• War widow’s pension
• Widow’s allowance
• Widowed parent’s allowance
• Widow’s pension

When is the Christmas bonus paid out?

There is no need to claim the Christmas bonus as it is automatically deposited into the accounts of those who qualify.

No fixed date for the payment has been given by the DWP, but it will be made before Christmas, into the same account benefits are normally paid.

Those who think they should get it, but have not received it by January 1 at the latest, should contact it Jobcenter Plus office dealing with their payments or Pension service.

Why is the Christmas bonus only £10?

A petition calling on the government to increase the Christmas bonus in line with inflation gained thousands of new signatures in the wake of the changes to the winter fuel payment.

The petition was started in October 2023 by Shona McMahon, who called for the Christmas bonus to rise in line with inflation, the first rise in more than 50 years.

She stated at the time: “Christmas is THE most expensive time of the year!

“Pensioners, vulnerable people and people like myself, disabled people, could do with an extra boost at this time of year, especially since energy assistance has been abolished.

“It was shocking to learn that the ‘£10 Christmas bonus’ has remained the same for over five decades!”

She pointed out that the bonus had remained at £10 since it was introduced in 1972, but if it had risen in line with inflation it would now be worth £113.18.

In September, the DWP said there were no plans to revise the arrangements for the bonus once signatures exceeded 16,000.

The petition now has 22,150 signatures.

A DWP spokesman said I: “We are protecting the most vulnerable by extending the Household Support Fund and Discretionary Housing Payments for 2025-26, and alongside this we want to fix the fundamentals of the social security system so that people are not dependent on crisis support.

“That’s why this Government is increasing the National Living Wage, upgrading benefits and helping over a million households by introducing a fair repayment rate on Universal Credit, while our Child Poverty Taskforce develops an ambitious strategy to give all children the best start life.”