Benefits in the UK – no recourse to public funds, Child Benefit, parental pay and State Pension
Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →
Most work, study and family visas come with a condition that rules out the benefits people think of first. Here is what no recourse to public funds means in the UK, what you can still get – from Child Benefit exceptions to maternity and sick pay – and how to build a State Pension.
Benefits in the UK depend first on your immigration status. Most work, study and family visas carry an NRPF (no recourse to public funds) condition, which rules out most benefits, tax credits and housing help paid by the state. Contribution-based benefits and statutory pay are not public funds – and several rules changed on 6 April 2026.
| From 6 April 2026 | What changed |
|---|---|
| Statutory Sick Pay | Paid from the first day of illness in Great Britain, with no lower earnings limit |
| Paternity Leave and unpaid Parental Leave | Day-one rights; Paternity Pay still needs 26 weeks' service |
| Universal Credit | Two-child limit abolished |
| Voluntary National Insurance | Harder to pay for years spent abroad |
Source: HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the Department for Work and Pensions and the Employment Rights Act 2025 regulations, read 23 September 2026.
What does no recourse to public funds mean?
Your eVisa tells you whether the condition applies. It rules out the main means-tested and family benefits, not what you build up through National Insurance or your job.
| Benefit | A public fund? |
|---|---|
| Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Housing Benefit, Child Benefit | Yes |
| Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Attendance Allowance, Carer's Allowance | Yes |
| Social housing, homelessness help, Council Tax Reduction | Yes |
| Scottish benefits such as Scottish Child Payment | Yes |
| New Style Jobseeker's Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance | No – open to you if you qualify |
| Statutory sick, maternity, paternity, adoption, shared parental and parental bereavement pay | No |
| Maternity Allowance, Bereavement Support Payment | No |
Source: UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), read 23 September 2026.
On the family or private life route, or with a British National (Overseas) visa, you can apply online to lift the condition if your finances change; others can apply if their circumstances are particularly compelling. Irish citizens claim on the same basis as British citizens, and ILR (indefinite leave to remain) lets you apply for benefits if you are eligible.
Childcare help works the same way: Tax-Free Childcare and England's 30 free hours need a National Insurance number plus British or Irish citizenship, settled or pre-settled status, or permission to access public funds (part 10).
Can you get Child Benefit in the UK?
Child Benefit is for anyone living in the UK who is responsible for a child under 16, or under 20 in approved education or training. In 2026/27 it pays £27.05 a week for the eldest or only child and £17.90 for each other child. One person claims per child, and a claim backdates only 3 months, so apply soon after you arrive.
| Your status | Child Benefit? |
|---|---|
| British or Irish citizen, or EU citizen with settled status | Yes |
| EU citizen with pre-settled status | For example, earning or expecting to earn above the National Insurance primary threshold, £242 a week, for 3 continuous months; then as a jobseeker for 91 days |
| Subject to immigration control, including NRPF | Usually not |
| National of Albania, Morocco, Tunisia or Turkey working in the UK | May qualify, as an exception |
| National of Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, the Channel Islands, Israel, Kosovo, Mauritius, Montenegro, New Zealand, North Macedonia or Serbia | May qualify, under an agreement with the UK |
Source: HMRC, read 23 September 2026.
If you or your partner has adjusted net income over £60,000, the High Income Child Benefit Charge takes back 1% for every £200 above it – all of it at £80,000. The higher earner pays, through their tax code or Self Assessment. You can opt out of the payments and still keep the National Insurance credits the claim brings.
What maternity, paternity and sick pay can you get?
Statutory payments are not public funds, so an NRPF condition does not stop them. The April 2026 leave and sick pay changes come from the Employment Rights Act 2025; how far they apply in Northern Ireland was not confirmed when we checked, so see nidirect.
| Right | What you get, 2026/27 | Who qualifies |
|---|---|---|
| Maternity Leave | 52 weeks; the 2 weeks after the birth are compulsory (4 in factories) | Any employee, however long employed |
| Statutory Maternity Pay | Up to 39 weeks: 90% of average earnings for 6 weeks, then £194.32 or 90%, whichever is lower | At least £129 a week on average, and 26 weeks with your employer by the 15th week before the due week |
| Maternity Allowance | £194.32 or 90%, whichever is less, for up to 39 weeks; £27 to £194.32 if self-employed | If you do not qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay |
| Paternity Leave and Pay | 2 weeks; £194.32 or 90%, whichever is lower | Leave from day one; pay needs £129 a week and 26 weeks' service |
| Shared Parental Leave and Pay | Up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 of pay to share, at the same weekly rate | Parents sharing the first year |
| Statutory Sick Pay | £123.25 a week or 80% of earnings, whichever is lower, from the first day, for up to 28 weeks | Employees |
Source: HMRC and the Department for Business and Trade, read 23 September 2026.
Families on certain benefits can claim a one-off £500 Sure Start Maternity Grant for a first child; Scotland has the Pregnancy and Baby Payment instead.
Who can claim Universal Credit?
Universal Credit is a public fund, so NRPF visa holders cannot claim it. You must live in the UK, be 18 or over (with some exceptions at 16 or 17), be under State Pension age and have £16,000 or less in money, savings and investments; EU, EEA and Swiss citizens may need settled or pre-settled status.
| Universal Credit, 2026/27 | Per month |
|---|---|
| Single, under 25 or 25 and over | £338.58 or £424.90 |
| Couple, both under 25 or either 25 and over | £528.34 or £666.97 |
| Each child | £303.94, plus £47.94 if your first child was born before 6 April 2017 |
| Childcare, if you work | Up to 85% of costs, at most £1,071.09 for one child or £1,836.16 for two or more |
Source: the Department for Work and Pensions, read 23 September 2026.
The two-child limit ended on 6 April 2026, under the Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Act 2026. Savings above £6,000 reduce the payment by £4.35 a month for every £250.
How does the UK State Pension work if you arrive mid-career?
The full new State Pension is £241.30 a week in 2026/27, and the 'triple lock' raises it each year by the highest of earnings growth, price inflation or 2.5%. What you get depends on your National Insurance record.
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Any pension at all | At least 10 qualifying years |
| Full pension | 35 qualifying years, if your record started after April 2016 |
| How a year qualifies | Contributions, credits – for example as a parent claiming Child Benefit – or voluntary contributions |
| Years abroad | Contributions in the EEA, Switzerland or a social security agreement country can count towards the 10-year minimum |
| Voluntary rates | Class 2 £3.65 a week; Class 3 £18.40 a week |
| Paying from abroad, since 6 April 2026 | No Class 2; Class 3 only after 10 years in a row living in the UK or 10 years of contributions – previously 3 |
| State Pension age | Rising from 66 to 67: born 6 April 1960 to 5 March 1961, you reach it at 66 plus 1 to 11 months |
Source: the Department for Work and Pensions and the Pensions Act 2014, read 23 September 2026.
If you might leave before retiring, check your record for gaps while you live here – they are now harder to fill from abroad.
What to do now
| Step | What | When |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Check your eVisa for an NRPF condition | Before you count on any benefit |
| 2 | Claim Child Benefit if you are eligible – HMRC Child Benefit Office, 0300 200 3100 | Within 3 months of arrival |
| 3 | Ask your employer about parental pay | Well before the 15th week before the due week |
| 4 | Check your National Insurance record for gaps | Before you leave the UK |
| 5 | Ask about New Style benefits: Jobcentre Plus, 0800 055 6688 | If you lose your job or fall ill |
| 6 | Free advice in England: Citizens Advice, 0800 144 8848 | When unsure |
Source: HMRC, the Department for Work and Pensions and Citizens Advice, read 23 September 2026.
Official sources
The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.
- GOV.UK / UKVI – Public funds · gov.uk
- GOV.UK / UKVI – Apply to change your permission to allow access to public funds · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Child Benefit: What you'll get · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Child Benefit: Who can get Child Benefit · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Child Benefit if you move to the UK · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – High Income Child Benefit Charge · gov.uk
- GOV.UK / HMRC – Child Benefit: contact · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Maternity pay and leave: Pay; HMRC – Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Maternity pay and leave: Eligibility · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Maternity pay and leave: Leave / Eligibility · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Maternity Allowance: What you'll get · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Paternity pay and leave: Pay / Eligibility · gov.uk
- legislation.gov.uk – Employment Rights Act 2025 (Commencement No. 1 ...) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/3); GOV.UK… · legislation.gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Shared Parental Leave and Pay · gov.uk
- HMRC – Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027; legislation.gov.uk SI 2026/373 · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – The new State Pension: What you'll get · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – The new State Pension: Eligibility / What you'll get · gov.uk
- legislation.gov.uk – Pensions Act 2014, section 26 (Increase in pensionable age to 67) · legislation.gov.uk
- GOV.UK – The new State Pension: If you've lived or worked abroad · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Voluntary National Insurance · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Universal Credit: Eligibility; UKVI – Public funds · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Universal Credit: What you'll get · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Universal Credit: What you'll get; legislation.gov.uk – Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Act… · legislation.gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Tax-Free Childcare · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Tax-Free Childcare (printable guide); Free Childcare for Working Parents: eligibility · gov.uk
- GOV.UK – Free Childcare for Working Parents · gov.uk
- GOV.WALES – Childcare Offer for Wales · gov.wales
- mygov.scot – Funded early learning and childcare · mygov.scot
- GOV.UK – Sure Start Maternity Grant · gov.uk
Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.