Eligible pensioners will receive a letter confirming their payment amount.
Eligible pensioners will receive a letter in October or November confirming their payment amount (Image: Getty)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will be sending letters to state pensioners for £300 and £200 payments this year.
The money is a winter fuel payment that will be awarded to eligible pensioners in England and Wales born before June 28, 1960. Now that the 2026/27 tax year is under way, the DWP has confirmed the eligibility criteria for this year’s payments, which will be issued to pensioner households in November or December to help pay winter heating bills. Payment amounts will vary depending on when you were born and your circumstances in the ‘qualifying week’ between September 21 and 27, 2026.
The DWP has confirmed that pensioners who live alone will get a payment of either £200, if you were born between September 28, 1946 and June 27, 1960, or £300, if you were born before September 28, 1946.
If you live with someone else who’s eligible for the winter fuel payment, your payment may be different if you get Pension Credit, Universal Credit or income-related Employment and Support Allowance.
Eligible pensioners will receive a letter in October or November this year confirming their payment amount, and most people will then be paid before January.
The DWP said: “You’ll get a letter in October or November telling you how much winter fuel payment you’ll get, if you’re eligible. If you do not get a letter but think you’re eligible, check if you need to make a claim.
“The amount you get is based on when you were born and your circumstances between 21 and September 27, 2026. This is called the ‘qualifying week’. Any money you get will not affect your other benefits.
“If your income is over £35,000, HMRC will take your winter fuel payment back by either:
- Changing your tax code
- Adding the amount to your Self Assessment tax return.
“If you live alone or no one you live with is eligible for the winter fuel payment, you’ll get either:
- £200 if you were born between September 28, 1946 and June 27, 1960
- £300 if you were born before September 28, 1946.”
Most pensioners will receive the payment automatically and don’t need to do anything to claim it if you get any of the following benefits:
- State Pension
- Pension Credit
- Universal Credit
- Attendance Allowance
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Carer’s Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- awards from the War Pensions Scheme
- Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
- Incapacity Benefit
- Industrial Death Benefit
If you don’t get any of these, then you will need to submit a claim for the payment if either of the following applies:
- You’ve not got the winter fuel payment before
- You’ve deferred your State Pension since your last winter fuel payment
The DWP added: “If you do not get a letter or the money has not been paid into your account by January 27, 2027, contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre.”