Around 9m pensioners are set to receive Winter Fuel Payments this winter
15:09, 30 Oct 2025
Nine million pensioners are set to receive Winter Fuel Payments this winter(Image: PA)
If you were born before September 22 1959, you could get a payment from DWP between £100 and £300 to help you pay your heating bills for winter 2025 to 2026, if you are eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. Previously, all people of State Pension age were eligible for this payment regardless of their income.
However, changes by the Labour government now mean that only those pensioners with an income of less than £35,000 a year qualify. The payment is designed to help with heating bills, the increased threshold means no lower or middle-income pensioners will miss out.
Around nine million pensioners are set to receive Winter Fuel Payments this winter, information on Gov.uk said “support will continue to be targeted, with pensioners above this [£35,000] threshold having the payment automatically recovered or able to opt out”.
Pensioners do not need to take action as they will automatically receive the payment this winter, for those who have incomes above the threshold, it will be recovered by HMRC. No one will need to register with HMRC for this or take any further action.
For winter 2025/26, the qualifying week will be September 15 to 21, 2025. A person needs to have reached State Pension age by the end of the qualifying week to be eligible.
The £35,000 threshold applies to you as an individual and does not include your partner’s income. The payment you receive will be recovered by HMRC via PAYE or Self-Assessment if your taxable income is more than £35,000.
Payments will be made to the main claimant who is receiving a means-tested benefit such as Pension Credit. If there is no means-tested benefit in payment, a shared payment will be made to a couple.
Guidance shared on Gov.uk says: “Most payments are made automatically in November or December.” You should get a letter telling you how much you’ll get and which bank account it will be paid into, this is usually the same account as your State Pension or other benefits.
If you do not get a letter or the money has not been paid into your account by 28 January 2026, you should contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre. You should also contact the centre if you need to report a change of circumstances or need to change your address or personal details
The deadline for opting out of the Winter Fuel Payment for 2025 to 2026 has passed. If your income is over £35,000 and you did not opt out, HMRC will take your Winter Fuel Payment back. You cannot return it yourself.
You can opt out of getting the Winter Fuel Payment for 2026 to 2027 onwards from April 2026. You can opt in again by contacting the Winter Fuel Payment Centre. To get a payment for winter 2025 to 2026 you need to contact them before March 31 2026.
You will automatically qualify for payments, meaning there’s no need to claim if you are of State Pension age and receive any of the following:
- State Pension
- Pension Credit
- Universal Credit
- Attendance Allowance
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Carer’s Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
- Income Support
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- awards from the War Pensions Scheme
- Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
- Incapacity Benefit
- Industrial Death Benefit
If you have not received any of these, you’ll need to make a claim if either of the following circumstances apply:
- You’ve never received the Winter Fuel Payment before
- You’ve deferred your State Pension since your last Winter Fuel Payment
