During the summer 2013 a limit will be introduced to the total amount of benefit (including Housing Benefit) that an out-of-work household can claim.

This is so that no family who are out of work will receive more in benefit payments that the average wage paid to people in work.

If your benefits are above this limit your Housing Benefit will be reduced to the amount you are above the cap

From April 2016 the benefit cap will be reduced. New amounts are:

Single parents and couples with children: £385

Single adults, no children: £258

For those in London, the amounts are £442 and £296 respectively

This cap will apply to the combined income from a number of different benefits and tax credits including

• Jobseekers Allowance
  
• Income Support
  
• Employment and Support Allowance (unless in the support group)
  
• Child Benefit
  
• Child Tax Credit
  
• Housing Benefit
  

The cap will not include one-off payments, non-cash benefits and things like free school meals, nor will it include Council Tax Reduction Scheme.

As before, it will be applied to the UC monthly amount or as a reduction in HB. The UC childcare component will not count towards the cap. People not in receipt of HB or a UC housing component will not receive sufficient benefits to be affected.

The following will not be affected by the cap.

All pensioners are exempt from the cap

The cap won't apply if you receive any of the following benefits

• Working Tax Credit
  
• Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment
  
• Attendance Allowance
  
• Employment and Support Allowance if paid with the support component
  
• Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
  
• War Widow/er's Pension
  

If you lose your job (through no fault of your own) after a period of 12 months continuous work, the cap won't apply for nine months.