Full time students and benefits - Can full-time students get Housing Benefit?

Most people cannot make new claims for Housing Benefit. If you already have a claim for Housing Benefit, it is possible you might be able to continue getting it while you study. Otherwise, any help with housing costs will be paid through Universal Credit and you will have to satisfy the eligibility tests for Universal Credit.

Housing Benefit

If you are a full-time student who is already getting Housing Benefit, you can continue to get Housing Benefit as a student if you meet one of the following conditions (these conditions also apply if you are a full-time student who falls into one of the groups who can still make new claims for Housing Benefit):

• You receive Income Support (IS) or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

• You are a lone parent or a member of a couple who are responsible for a child and you are both full-time students 

• You are a lone foster carer with a child formally placed with you by a local authority or voluntary agency

• You receive Disability Living Allowance (DLA), Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Adult Disability Payment Scotland or Attendance Allowance, the disability or severe disability element of Working Tax Credit or a War Pensioner’s Disability Supplement

• You or your partner are registered blind

• You have been unable to work due to sickness or disability for at least 28 weeks

• You qualify for a Disabled Student’s Allowance because you are deaf

• You take time out from your course because of illness or caring responsibilities in certain circumstances (see Time out from study within this guide)

• You are under 21 on a non-advanced course - age can sometimes be extended to 22

• You are over 66 and neither you nor your partner are getting Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). If you qualify for guaranteed Pension Credit, you will receive maximum entitlement to Housing Benefit.

If you are under 66 and receive student support, in the form of a grant or loan, this will usually reduce the amount of Housing Benefit you can get. Unless you also get Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), in which case you will automatically receive your maximum entitlement to Housing Benefit.

Reviewed: January 2023