Universal Credit statistics

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Universal Credit is a payment to help support households that are out of work or are on a low income. Universal Credit was introduced in Northern Ireland on a phased geographical basis from 27 September 2017.

Statistics have been compiled on the following:

The number of claimants and households on Universal Credit
Family type of households on Universal Credit
Average payments households receive
Statistics on housing support
Where Universal Credit claimants are located
The work conditionality regime that claimants belong to
Households and Number of Children impacted by Two Child Policy
Households receiving Local Housing Allowance
Households impacted by the Benefit Cap

Latest Universal Credit Publication

Correction Notice (May 2026): The methodology used to calculate the number of households receiving Universal Credit with no additional elements has been revised to improve accuracy. As a result, the estimates presented in the most recent release (data to February 2026) better reflect the underlying position. Updated figures are presented in this publication and accompanying ODS file (Table 14).

Universal Credit Statistics - February 2026

Previous Universal Credit Publications

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

User Consultation

Analytics Division would appreciate your feedback on the Universal Credit Statistics publication. The request for user feedback and survey can be found below;

Universal Credit Statistics user consultation

Move to UC Tax Credit Research

A research paper examining the reasons why some Tax Credit Only customers did not migrate to Universal Credit when invited to as part of the Move to UC process.

Move to UC Tax Credit Research

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