The second bank holiday in May is coming and as the benefits department doesn’t make payments on bank holidays, if you were due money on this day, you will have had it paid earlier
Thousands of claimants are set to have their benefits paid early by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or HMRC this month as part of a temporary shake-up.
The second bank holiday in May is coming and this year it falls on Monday, May 26. As the benefits department doesn’t make payments on bank holidays, if you were due money on this day, you will have had it paid earlier on Friday, May 23 instead.
The change is normal as it aims to ensure claimants have access to their benefits before the long weekend to prevent any financial strains that delayed payments could cause.
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If you’re due to be paid on a different day, you won’t need to do anything – the money will be paid into your account as normal. The amount you get will also remain the same, and it will also be paid into the same account in which you normally receive your benefit payment.
Payment dates will return to normal after this, until the August bank holiday. After this, payment dates will be shaken up again in December because of the Christmas bank holidays.
If your money does not arrive in your account on the new payment date, you will need to contact the department that pays your benefit as soon as possible. You can find the relevant support numbers on the government’s official website.
It’s important to note that support lines are not open on the bank holiday so you will need to contact them the day the payment is due.
It’s also very important to note that although receiving your benefits earlier may sound like a good thing, it does mean that you need to make your money last longer, even if it is just by one day.
When are benefits normally paid?
- Attendance Allowance – Usually every four weeks
- Carer’s Allowance – Weekly in advance or every four weeks
- Child Benefit – Usually every four weeks
- Disability Living Allowance – Usually every four weeks
- Employment and Support Allowance – Usually every two weeks
- Income Support – Usually every two weeks
- Jobseeker’s Allowance – Usually every two weeks
- Pension Credit – Usually every four weeks
- Personal Independence Payment – Usually every four weeks
- State Pension – Usually every four weeks
- Universal Credit – Every month
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