Changes to Housing Benefit and Discretionary Housing Payments.

Change of Housing Benefit Office Location

From 3 July assessment of all Housing Benefit claims for those living in the Poleglass area has moved from SE Housing Benefit (Newtownards) to Belfast Housing Benefit. 

Housing Benefit applications received from residents of the Poleglass area before 3 July 2017 which have not been assessed are being completed within the South-East Housing Benefit Unit during July.   Meanwhile all new Housing Benefit claimants, along with existing Housing Benefit claimants living in Poleglass, from 3 July onwards are being directed to the Housing Benefit team in Great Victoria Street, Belfast.

Housing associations and claimants from the Poleglass area will see no change in service.  Contact details for Housing Benefit customers remain unchanged with all current / potential claimants continuing to call 03448 920 902 for help and advice.

Claimants can continue to call into the local office in Dairy Farm and if they wish to write to us about their claim, correspondence should be addressed to: Housing Benefit, Housing Executive, 32-36 Great Victoria Street, Belfast, BT2 7BA.

Applying for Housing Benefit online

The Housing Executive now offers new claimants the opportunity to apply for Housing Benefit online 24/7 via their website www.nihe.gov.uk

It is important to have an application for Housing Benefit completed in a timely manner; the sooner it is in the sooner it can be assessed and Housing Benefit paid if it is awarded.

This will be particularly useful for housing association tenants who may need to make an application within a short period of time to meet the rules regarding ‘same benefit week’.

The Housing Executive have assured NIFHA that for the time being the current paper based applications can still be used although they will be phasing this out.

Scans of ‘evidence’ which are requested can also be submitted online for claims, through Further Evidence Attached (FEHB1) form.  However, they can still be submitted in person at one of their local offices.

The Housing Executive will shortly be publicising this through their website and social media outlets and staff will be encouraging new claimants to apply online.

Discretionary Housing Payments

The revised Discretionary Housing Payment Application Form is now online at: https://www.nihe.gov.uk/discretionary_housing_payment_application_form.pdf

This is a fixed PDF document but the Housing Executive hope to get an interactive version online shortly.

Discretionary Housing Payment can now be awarded to both private and social sector tenants.  A tenant can apply for an award if their Housing Benefit is affected by one (or more) of the following:

• A rent restriction (private only);
• The Family Premium not being included in their Housing Benefit calculation because of a change in the law in September 2016;
• Benefit Cap legislation where the amount of a person’s benefit cap is increased but their Welfare Supplementary Payment remains the same.