The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has confirmed the exact birth date needed to qualify for the Winter Fuel Payment in 2026, with eligible pensioners set to receive between £100 and £300 towards their heating costs.
To be eligible for the payment for winter 2026 to 2027, individuals must have been born on or before 28 June 1960. The tax-free annual lump sum is issued by the UK government to help older people cover their heating expenses during the winter period.
Reason for the June cut-off date
Earlier this year, in a parliamentary inquiry, Labour's Michael Wheeler questioned Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Pat McFadden: "For what reason the cut-off date for eligibility for receipt of winter fuel payment is in June."
Parliamentary Secretary for the Treasury and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions Torsten Bell responded: "The Winter Fuel Payment is an age-related payment payable to everyone who has reached State Pension age on or before the end of the qualifying week and is ordinarily resident in England or Wales. The qualifying week is set out in legislation and is the third full week of September, for winter 2026/27 that is 21 to 27 September 2026."
"The State Pension age for men and women will increase to 67 between 2026 and 2028. People born between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961 will reach their State Pension age at 66 years and the specified number of months, depending on the exact date they were born."
"Therefore, a person needs to be born on or before 27 June 1960 to have reached State Pension age by the end of the qualifying week to be eligible for a Winter Fuel Payment for winter 2026/27."
Payment amounts and eligibility criteria
If eligible, the payment is either £200 or £300, depending on your specific living situation and age:
- Aged under 80: You will get £200.
- Aged 80 or over: You will get £300.
On this issue, Labour's Rachael Maskell recently raised concerns: "For what reason a single pensioner's household income could be less than that of a couple and the couple could be entitled to the Winter Fuel Allowance where the single pensioner was not."
Mr Bell clarified that payments are assessed on personal earnings: "Winter Fuel Payments are assessed and, where applicable, recovered on an individual basis rather than by reference to total household income. This reflects the structure of the personal tax system."
"Winter Fuel Payments remain a simple scheme to provide a lump sum payment to the majority of pensioners quickly and automatically, without the need to claim. The system for withdrawing the Winter Fuel Payment for those with higher incomes is simple and cost-effective to deliver."
"The £35,000 threshold means that more than three-quarters of pensioners will benefit from the Winter Fuel Payment. The threshold is in line with average earnings and means those on lower and middle incomes are receiving the help they need while ensuring payments are better targeted than the previous near-universal payment; and ensuring fairness for both pensioners and taxpayers."
How to claim and opt out
Individuals are now able to opt out of receiving the Winter Fuel Payment to avoid having to pay it back at a later stage. In the majority of cases, the money will be recovered automatically through the tax system.
You do not need to claim if you get any of the following: State Pension, Pension Credit, Universal Credit, Attendance Allowance, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Carer’s Allowance, Disability Living Allowance (DLA), income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), awards from the War Pensions Scheme, Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit, Incapacity Benefit, or Industrial Death Benefit.
If you do not get any of these, you need to claim if either of the following apply: you’ve not got the Winter Fuel Payment before, or you’ve deferred your State Pension since your last Winter Fuel Payment.
Claims for winter 2026 to 2027 open from 21 September 2026. Those who qualify will receive the payment automatically, with no application forms required.
The BBC's Cost of Living correspondent, Colletta Smith, previously stressed: "Those eligible are people who earn now £35,000 or less, so it's a much higher threshold as a pensioner. So if you are getting some form of private pension, workplace pension, as long as you're below that threshold of £35,000, you'll still get the winter fuel payments. And crucially, it will come automatically. So like it used to."
Previously you don't have to apply for it. HMRC will adjust an individual's tax code during the 2026 to 2027 tax year. The reimbursement will appear as an underpayment, leading to slightly higher tax deductions being taken each month.
From 1 April 2026, households have been able to opt out of the 2026 to 2027 payment by getting in touch with the Winter Fuel Payment Centre or completing an online form. A National Insurance number will be needed to carry out this process.
Once someone opts out, they will stop receiving future payments unless they decide to re-register. The main reason for withdrawing from the scheme is if a household expects their income to remain above the threshold, as from the 2027 to 2028 tax year, HMRC plans to reclaim payments in advance rather than in arrears.
This means deductions could be roughly double the usual amount. For a standard £200 payment, this could mean approximately £33 per month being deducted through the tax system, compared to around £17 previously.
These deductions are anticipated to return to the lower monthly figure in the following tax year.
