DWP sending letters to state pensioners for £300 payment | Personal Finance | Finance

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has confirmed it will be sending letters to state pensioners for a £300 payment later this year.

The £300 is a Winter Fuel Payment to help those who are eligible with heating costs during the winter. Nine million state pensioners in England and Wales are due to get a Winter Fuel Payment this year following a change in eligibility rules. Chancellor Rachel Reeves last month restored the payment to the vast majority of pensioners who were previously denied it followed a rule change in 2024. Millions of households missed out on the vital winter support after Labour restricted the payment only to those who claimed Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits.

This decision to means-test the payment meant the number of pensioners eligible to get it plummeted from around 11.4 million down to just 1.5 million. But following a government U-turn last month, as many as nine million pensioners will receive it this year.

Pensioners who were born before September 22, 1959, with an income of, or below, £35,000 will get between £100 and £300 from the DWP to help pay heating bills this winter.

You must have reached State Pension age – which is currently 66 for men and women – by the end of the qualifying week (September 21, 2025) to be eligible.

The Winter Fuel Payment is worth £200 per household, or £300 per household where there is someone over the age of 80. Shared payments will be made to pensioners not on an income-related benefit such as Pension Credit.

Pensioners in England and Wales with an income above £35,000 per year will see their Winter Fuel Payment be automatically recovered by HMRC via PAYE or in their Self-Assessment tax return.

Payments will be made automatically by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) so pensioners don’t need to do anything to get it.

The DWP will send letters in October and November this year to all pensioners in England and Wales who are eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment and this letter will confirm the amount they will receive. Payments will then be made in November and December.

The DWP said: “You’ll get a letter in October or November telling you how much Winter Fuel Payment you’ll get, if you’re eligible. If you do not get a letter but think you’re eligible, check if you need to make a claim.

“The amount you get is based on when you were born and your circumstances between 15 to 21 September 2025. This is called the ‘qualifying week’. Any money you get will not affect your other benefits.

“You’ll get either £200 if you were born between 22 September 1945 and 21 September 1959, or £300 if you were born before 22 September 1945.”