Cost-of-living support scheme

The Welsh Government has announced £152m to provide a £150 cost-of-living payment to eligible households and £25m to provide discretionary support for other purposes related to living costs.

The schemes are intended to provide support as Wales recovers from the pandemic and support households to deal with the impact of increasing energy and other costs. 

Eligibility

A household will qualify for this payment if :-

• They were in receipt of support through the Council Tax Reduction Scheme on 15 February 2022, regardless of the valuation band in which their property is placed.

Or

If a household is occupying a property in council tax Bands A to D and they were:

• Liable for council tax on a property on 15 February 2022;
• Not in receipt of an exemption
• In occupation of a property on 15 February 2022 and at date of determining award;
• Living in the property as their main or primary residence;
• Responsible for paying the associated utility and other regularly incurred bills for the property. Local authorities administering the scheme will be able to make the reasonable assumption that household(s) liable to pay council tax are also responsible for paying the utility and other regularly incurred bills. 

Households living in properties which attract a disability adaptation band reduction are eligible for a payment in the following circumstances e.g. a property which has been valued as Band E but which receives a disability adaptation band reduction to Band D is eligible.

Payments

Each household is restricted to only one payment of £150

Residents in council tax Bands A-D who currently pay their council tax by direct debit will receive the payments automatically.

Those who do not pay by direct debit will receive a letter or email with an access code with instructions on how to register for the payment.

Please do not contact us regarding this as it could lead to a delay in the processing of your payment.