Pension Credit is paid to people on a low income to help them with their everyday living expenses
A group of pensioners have been told they will not qualify for Pension Credit – no matter how low their income. According to Age UK Pension Credit is a means-tested benefit for people over State Pension age who have a low income.
It tops up a claimant’s income to a guaranteed minimum level which is currently £227.10 if you’re single or £346.60 if you’re a couple. It can also open the door to other benefits such as help with health and housing costs.
However the rules state someone who is part of a couple will not qualify if their partner is under pension age, currently 66. Lib Dem MP Liz Jarvis questioned the rule asking of the impact it has on those in a “mixed age” relationship but on a low income.
In a letter to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions she asked “what assessment” their Department had made “of the potential impact on levels of pensioner poverty among mixed-age couples of the requirement that both members of a couple must have reached State Pension age in order to be eligible for Pension Credit or pension-age Housing Benefit.”
However, in reply, Stephen Timms, the Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions, said the rules were “important”. In a written reply, he said: “Ensuring that individuals can get into, progress and stay in work is important in helping them to continue saving for their own retirement and contribute to the wider economy.
“The requirement for mixed-age couples to seek financial support from the working-age social security system until both members of the couple reach State Pension Age ensures that, once in receipt of Universal Credit, the younger partner can access the same employment support that is available for customers below State Pension Age, including dedicated employment support for customers over the age of 50. The pension-age partner is placed in the no-work related requirements group.
“The Government recognises the critical role Universal Credit has to play in tackling poverty and making work pay and is taking important steps to support people with their living costs. For the first time ever, we have introduced a sustained above inflation increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance for all claimants. From April 2026, this will see the standard allowance uprated by 3.8%, followed by a further 2.3%.”
Prior to 2019 couples who were mixed age – where one was a pensioner and the other under pension age – could choose to claim either Pension Credit or working age benefits. Then in 2019 the government changed this so they would be treated as a “working age” couple for means-tested benefits.
At the time Age UK criticised it as “unfair” warning it would have a serious impact on pensioners with a younger partner. It warned it would put pensioners in a situation where they would be better off living alone and claiming Pension Credit than living as a couple receiving Universal Credit.
And earlier this year Independent Age, a later in life financial hardship charity, called on the government to end the rule. It said goverment figures showed that affected couples could be losing around £5,900 a year, with some losing as much as £7,000.
Independent Age Chief Executive, Joanna Elson CBE said: “Our helpline received a call from a 79-year-old who was unable to claim Pension Credit because their partner is 59. Under the mixed-age couples rule, they will have to wait until they are 87 before they can access this life-changing financial support.
“The UK Government has created a flawed system where two people of the same age can be treated completely differently just because one has a younger partner.” The charity is urging the UK Government to reverse the mixed-age couples rule, to enable couples to claim pensioner benefits once the older partner reaches State Pension age.
She added: “The mixed-age couples rule is unfair and must end. It is wrong that older people on a low-income with younger partners are locked out of vital financial support, forcing them to wait years for entitlements like Pension Credit. Independent Age supports couples where the younger partner is in low-paid employment or unable to work due to health conditions, or due to caring for their older partner. This rule risks pushing more older people into deep financial hardship.
“Who you fall in love with and choose to spend your later years with should not determine how much financial support you receive. Far too many older couples are forced to live on tiny incomes because of this rule. It’s time for the UK Government to reverse it.”
Ensure our latest headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as your Preferred Source in your Google search settings
