The payment has existed for more than five decades and does not require a separate application. According to the Express, eligible claimants must meet two conditions during the qualifying week, which is normally the first full week of December, before the money is automatically paid.
Who Qualifies for the £10 Christmas Bonus
To receive the Christmas Bonus, a person must be present in, or ordinarily resident in, the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the qualifying week. They must also receive at least one benefit included on the qualifying list.
According to the Express, the 24 benefits are Adult Disability Payment, Armed Forces Independence Payment, Attendance Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, Carer Support Payment, Child Disability Payment, Constant Attendance Allowance and contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance once the main phase begins after the first 13 weeks of a claim.
The list also includes Disability Living Allowance, long-term Incapacity Benefit, Industrial Death Benefit for widows or widowers, Mobility Supplement, Pension Age Disability Payment, the guarantee element of Pension Credit and Personal Independence Payment. Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance, transitionally protected Severe Disablement Allowance and the State Pension, including Graduated Retirement Benefit, also qualify.
Other eligible payments are Unemployability Supplement or Allowance under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes, War Disablement Pension at State Pension age, War Widow’s Pension, Widowed Mother’s Allowance, Widowed Parent’s Allowance and Widow’s Pension. People who have not claimed their State Pension and do not receive another qualifying benefit will not receive the Christmas Bonus.
How the Payment Works and What Couples Need to Know
People who satisfy the eligibility conditions do not need to complete a form. According to the Express, the DWP automatically sends the additional £10 in December, and the transaction may appear as “DWP XB” on a recipient’s bank statement.
The Christmas Bonus was introduced in 1972 under Ted Heath’s Conservative Government. The amount has remained at £10 since its introduction. The source reports that, using the composite price index published by the UK Office for National Statistics, £10 from that period would be worth about £118 in today’s money.
Rules also apply to couples. Where two people are married, in a civil partnership or living together as if they are, and both receive a qualifying benefit, each person receives a separate Christmas Bonus payment.
A partner who does not receive one of the listed benefits may still qualify in certain circumstances. The Express reports that this can apply when both partners are over State Pension age by the end of the qualifying week and the partner was also present in, or ordinarily resident in, one of the qualifying territories.
The payment therefore depends on benefit status and residence during the specified December qualifying period, with eligible recipients receiving the £10 automatically rather than through a separate claim.
