Morning Live journalist Dan Whitworth has issued a warning over the changes.
HMRC set to deduct £300 from state pensioners after rule change
HMRC is set to deduct £300 from millions of UK pensioners this winter. BBC Morning Live journalist Dan Whitworth has issued a warning over the changes.
“This story, widely reported, relates to upcoming changes to the Winter Fuel Payment (known as the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment in Scotland),” Dan said. From November, the payment will continue to go automatically to people aged 66 and over to help with heating costs.
Winter Fuel Payments are worth up to £300 and are paid to pensioners who were born before September 22, 1959. However, if your income is over £35,000 a year, you will be paid your Winter Fuel Payment – but you’ll then need to pay it back through the tax system.
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Dan said: “What’s changed is the introduction of a new income cap. Those earning more than £35,000 a year will no longer qualify.
“Rather than withholding payments upfront, the government will pay everyone first and then recover the money from those over the threshold through the tax system.
“Around 2 million people are expected to be affected, and the average amount to be repaid will be up to £300. hat money will not be taken from bank accounts. Instead, HMRC will reclaim it through tax.”
“From 2027, the process will change again. HMRC plans to collect two payments in that year, one to recover overpaid support from 2026 and another in advance for the 2027 payment, meaning some people could see deductions of up to £600 across the year,” he said.
The government says this approach helps avoid delays in recouping overpayments and ensures the system stays up to date.”
A spokesperson for HMRC told BBC Morning Live: “For PAYE customers, for a typical payment of £200, we’ll deduct approximately £17 per month. In the 2027 to 2028 tax year, we’ll deduct approximately £33 per month for a typical payment of £200.
“This is because we’ll be collecting payments from 2026 and 2027. It will then return to approximately £17 per month for the 2028 to 2029 tax year.”