The Department for Work and Pensions has made the Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 2026/6). The instrument was made on 6 January 2026, laid before Parliament on 8 January 2026 and comes into force on 29 January 2026. It applies in England, Wales and Scotland and updates the 2014 Transitional Regulations to clarify migration notice deadlines and to protect certain claimants’ transitional entitlement where identity verification initially failed.
Regulation 44 of the Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2014 is amended so that, in specified cases, the deadline set out in a migration notice may be the appointed day on which the relevant legacy benefit is abolished for that award under section 33(1) of the Welfare Reform Act 2012. This applies to claimants on income‑based Jobseeker’s Allowance, income‑related Employment and Support Allowance or Income Support, and to claimants on Housing Benefit. Where a person receives Housing Benefit and another legacy benefit, the deadline is determined by the appointed day for the other legacy benefit, ensuring access to transitional protection provided by the 2014 Regulations.
For these purposes, appointed day means the day specified in an order made under section 150(3) of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 bringing section 33(1)(a) to (d) into force for the particular award. The amendment confirms that the appointed day is not dependent on the making of a claim for Universal Credit and is identified ignoring any provision that would otherwise disapply the appointed day if it fell within a run‑on period.
The Regulations also clarify two related concepts. First, a reference to a claim for Universal Credit includes a case where an award is made without a claim, as provided for by the 2013 Commencement Order (S.I. 2013/983). Second, run‑on period means the two‑week period referenced in regulations 8(2A) or 46(1)(a), or in regulation 5(1) of the Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/1152). In practice, this avoids gaps between the legal switch‑off of a legacy award and the migration deadline printed on notices.
A new regulation 63A is inserted to address claimants who made a qualifying claim for Universal Credit that did not result in an award because identity could not be verified, while legacy benefits were incorrectly continued. Where the claimant then makes a subsequent claim within one month of being notified that they may do so, the Secretary of State may treat them as having remained entitled to their legacy award for the relevant date tests used in the Transitional Regulations. This is a targeted fix to prevent loss of transitional protection caused solely by identity verification issues.
For cases where old‑style Employment and Support Allowance continued after an identity‑failed qualifying claim, the Secretary of State may, for the purposes of regulation 19(1)(a) or 20(1)(a) of the 2014 Transitional Regulations, treat the person as entitled to old‑style ESA on the date the subsequent claim was made or treated as made. This preserves eligibility that depends on entitlement at the point of transition.
Where the continued legacy award included a Severe Disability Premium in Income Support, income‑based Jobseeker’s Allowance or income‑related Employment and Support Allowance, the Secretary of State may, for the purposes of paragraph 3(a) of Schedule 2 to the 2014 Transitional Regulations, treat the claimant as having been entitled to such an award within the month immediately preceding the first day of the Universal Credit award. This ensures the correct consideration of the relevant transitional element.
The instrument also covers cases involving disability‑related premiums other than the Severe Disability Premium. Where the continued legacy award included an Enhanced Disability Premium, a Disability Premium or a Disabled Child Premium, the Secretary of State may, for the purposes of paragraph 4(a) to (c) of Schedule 3 to the 2014 Transitional Regulations, treat the claimant as having been entitled to those premiums within the month immediately before the start of the Universal Credit award. This enables the appropriate transitional protection to be applied.
Operationally, the migration notice change allows caseworkers to align deadline days with the legally appointed day on which the legacy award ends for the individual case, rather than setting a date that falls after abolition and risks undermining eligibility for transitional amounts. Advisers should note the strict one‑month window for the subsequent claim under regulation 63A; missing that window will prevent the deeming provisions from applying.
The Social Security Advisory Committee agreed that the proposals need not be referred to it under section 173(1)(b) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992. The Secretary of State consulted representative organisations for regulation 2(1) and (2) as required by section 176(1)(a) of the 1992 Act. No full impact assessment has been produced, with the Department citing no significant impact on the private, voluntary or public sector. The instrument was signed by the Minister of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, Stephen Timms, on 6 January 2026.