Many benefits will increase in April at the start of the financial yearClose up of a Young family having breakfast and going over their bills and home finances on the laptopIt comes after the two-child benefit cap was scrapped(Image: vorDa via Getty Images)

Benefits and state pension rates are due to increase in April 2026 at the start of the new financial year. How much they increase by depends on slightly different factors – and Ms Reeves announced how both will be uprated at the Autumn Budget on November 26.

The Government is required to review the level of benefits each year to see if they have kept up with increases in general prices. Inflation in the year to September has generally been the measure used to decide this.

It was confirmed in November that UK inflation remained unchanged at 3.8 per cent in September – despite the majority of economists and the Bank of England having expected inflation to rise to 4 per cent. This means benefits will go up by 3.8 per cent in April 2026.

There are nine benefits which the DWP is legally required to increase in line with inflation each April. Other benefits are subject to Parliamentary approval. The benefits that are legally required to rise with inflation are:

  • Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
  • Disability Living Allowance
  • Attendance Allowance
  • Incapacity Benefit
  • Severe Disablement Allowance
  • Industrial Injuries Benefit
  • Carer’s Allowance
  • Additional State Pension
  • Guardian’s Allowance

For those who receive the State Pension, rates are set to rise by 4.8 per cent, as pensions will increase this April in line with the average earnings growth figure for May to July 2025. This means those on the new state pension will see a weekly rise of £11.05, while those on the old state pension will see a weekly rise of £8.45.

State Pensions increase each April and the amount they go up by is worked out by the triple lock – a mechanism used to ensure the payment rates rise each year in line with whichever is higher out of inflation, earnings or 2.5 per cent. This is to prevent the value of pensions being reduced by cost of living pressures.

In April 2026, most benefits in the UK will rise by 3.8% based on September 2025 inflation, while the State Pension will see a larger increase of 4.8% due to the triple lock guarantee. However, Universal Credit is seeing a special “rebalancing” rise, with standard allowances increasing by approximately 6.2% to 6.8%.

Below is the summary of the main proposed rate changes from the 2025/26 tax year to the 2026/27 tax year.

State Pension Increases

  • New State Pension: Rising from £230.25 to £241.30 per week
  • Basic State Pension: Rising from £176.45 to £184.90 per week

Universal Credit Standard Allowance

  • Single (under 25): Rising from £316.98 to £338.58 per month
  • Single (25 or over): Rising from £400.14 to £424.90 per month
  • Joint claimants (both under 25): Rising from £497.55 to £528.34 per month
  • Joint claimants (one or both 25+): Rising from £628.10 to £666.97 per month
  • Note: These above-inflation rises are part of a 4-year “rebalancing” plan enacted by the Universal Credit Act 2025

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) & DLA Care Component

  • Enhanced/Highest Rate: Rising from £110.40 to £114.60 per week
  • Standard/Middle Rate: Rising from £73.90 to £76.70 per week
  • The lowest rate of DLA care will rise from £29.20 to £30.30 per week

PIP & DLA Mobility Component

  • Enhanced/Higher Rate: Rising from £77.05 to £80.00 per week
  • The standard/lower rate of mobility will rise from £29.20 to £30.30 per week

Attendance Allowance

  • Higher Rate: Rising from £110.40 to £114.60 per week
  • Lower Rate: Rising from £73.90 to £76.70 per week

Carer’s Allowance

  • Weekly Rate: Rising from £83.30 to £86.45
  • Earnings Threshold: The amount a carer can earn while remaining eligible will rise to £204 per week (equivalent to 16 hours at the National Living Wage)

Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

  • Support Group: Rising from £48.50 to £50.35 per week (this is the additional component amount)
  • The personal allowance for ESA (over 25s) will rise from £90.50 to £93.95 per week

Child Benefit

  • Eldest/Only Child: Rising from £26.05 to £27.05 per week
  • Additional Children: Rising from £17.25 to £17.90 per week

Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)

  • Over 25s: Rising from £90.50 to £93.95 per week

From April 2026, the two-child cap on Universal Credit and Child Tax Credits will be removed. Families will now receive the child element for their third and subsequent children. A major “rebalancing” takes effect on 6 April 2026.

  • New Claimants: Those newly found to have “Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity” (LCWRA) will receive a lower health element of £217.26 per month
  • Existing Claimants: Those already receiving the element before April 2026 are protected at the higher rate, which will slightly increase to £429.80 per month

The Benefit Cap is expected to remain frozen at £25,323 in London and £22,020 elsewhere. This means that as benefit rates rise, more families may reach the cap and find their total payments frozen or reduced.