The Short Answer
In 2026/27 the Universal Credit LCWRA element, often called the health element, is £429.80 or £217.26 a month, depending on whether the health condition was reported before or after 6 April 2026. The higher amount also goes to anyone who meets the severe conditions criteria or is terminally ill. In 2025/26 there was a single amount of £423.27. PIP is decided separately and does not reduce Universal Credit.
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Key facts
| Fact | Figure | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected LCWRA amount a month (2026/27) | £429.80 | GOV.UK | 30 September 2026 |
| LCWRA amount for new health claims a month (2026/27) | £217.26 | GOV.UK | 30 September 2026 |
| LCWRA amount a month (2025/26) | £423.27 | GOV.UK | 30 September 2026 |
| Date the two amounts began | 6 April 2026 | legislation.gov.uk | 30 September 2026 |
| Does PIP reduce Universal Credit | No | GOV.UK | 30 September 2026 |
How Much Is LCWRA in 2026/27?
The LCWRA element is £429.80 a month for claimants protected by the pre-2026, severe conditions or terminal illness rules, and £217.26 a month for other claimants in 2026/27. GOV.UK describes it as the extra amount for people who have limited capability for work and work-related activity, added to the Universal Credit standard allowance. It is paid monthly inside the Universal Credit award. PIP stays outside that award, and the separate rules on working while claiming PIP leave PIP unaffected by earnings.
| Who gets it | A month | A year | Weekly equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026/27: claim or health condition reported before 6 April 2026, severe conditions criteria met, or terminally ill | £429.80 | £5,157.60 | £99.18 |
| 2026/27: health condition first declared on or after 6 April 2026, with no severe lifelong condition and not terminally ill | £217.26 | £2,607.12 | £50.14 |
| 2025/26: every LCWRA award (one amount) | £423.27 | £5,079.24 | £97.68 |
Universal Credit is paid monthly. The weekly equivalent spreads 12 monthly amounts over 52 weeks, for comparison with PIP's weekly rates.
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Source: DWP, Benefit and pension rates 2026 to 2027; Universal Credit Act 2025, section 2
Over a year the two amounts come to £5,157.60 and £2,607.12, a gap of £212.54 a month or £2,550.48 a year. The table below shows how each amount compares with 2025/26.
| LCWRA amount | 2025/26 a month | 2026/27 a month | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected amount (pre-2026, severe conditions, terminally ill) | £423.27 | £429.80 | Up £6.53 (1.5%) |
| Amount for other claimants | £423.27 | £217.26 | Down £206.01 (48.7%) |
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The PIP and Universal Credit rules that sit around these amounts are set out in pip and universal credit explained.
Why Did LCWRA Change in April 2026?
LCWRA changed on 6 April 2026 because section 2 of the Universal Credit Act 2025 added a lower amount of £217.26 to regulation 36 of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013. The lower amount applies to any claimant with limited capability for work and work-related activity who is not a pre-2026 claimant, a severe conditions criteria claimant or terminally ill. The existing amount now applies only to those three groups. Both amounts take effect for assessment periods that start on or after 6 April 2026.
The change is one of several that took effect in the 2026/27 benefit year; the PIP side of them is covered in PIP Changes in 2026/27.
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Who Keeps the Higher Amount?
The higher LCWRA amount of £429.80 goes to people who reported their condition before 6 April 2026 and to people with a severe lifelong condition or nearing the end of life. GOV.UK lists five routes to it:
- You told the DWP about your health condition or disability before 6 April 2026, whatever the date of the LCWRA decision.
- You were already getting LCWRA before 6 April 2026.
- You had the support group component of income-related Employment and Support Allowance before 6 April 2026, and still get it when you claim Universal Credit.
- You have a severe, lifelong health condition or disability.
- You are nearing the end of your life.
A health professional reviews the medical evidence for the severe, lifelong test during the Work Capability Assessment. The condition must mean you cannot work, last your whole life, not get better, and be officially diagnosed. A letter after the assessment confirms the finding, and another assessment is not usually needed. A couple receives one LCWRA amount, at the higher rate if either partner qualifies for it. How the ESA support group relates to PIP is set out in PIP vs ESA.
Is LCWRA Going Up in 2027?
No 2027/28 LCWRA figure has been published, and the Universal Credit Act 2025 does not require the LCWRA element itself to rise in 2027/28, 2028/29 or 2029/30. Section 3 of the Act lifts the annual uprating duty in section 150 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 from the LCWRA element for those years. Section 4 instead requires the protected amount plus each standard allowance to rise at least in line with the previous September's CPI. That duty can be met by raising either figure. For 2026/27 the protected amount rose by £6.53 a month. How the April uprating works for PIP is covered in april uprating explained.
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How LCWRA and PIP Fit Together
LCWRA and PIP are decided separately, and a PIP award does not reduce Universal Credit or its LCWRA element. GOV.UK lists the benefits whose payment reduces Universal Credit, and PIP is not one of them. The LCWRA element follows the Work Capability Assessment, while PIP follows its own assessment of daily living and mobility activities. An award of one is not evidence that decides the other.
The two are also paid on different cycles. LCWRA arrives monthly inside Universal Credit; PIP is paid every 4 weeks. As weekly equivalents, the two LCWRA amounts are £99.18 and £50.14, against PIP's four weekly rates below.
Daily living component
Standard rate
£332.37 a month on average
- a week
- £76.70
- every 4 weeks
- £306.80
- a year
- £3,988.40
Enhanced rate
£496.60 a month on average
- a week
- £114.60
- every 4 weeks
- £458.40
- a year
- £5,959.20
Mobility component
Standard rate
£131.30 a month on average
- a week
- £30.30
- every 4 weeks
- £121.20
- a year
- £1,575.60
Enhanced rate
£346.67 a month on average
- a week
- £80.00
- every 4 weeks
- £320.00
- a year
- £4,160.00
Both components at the enhanced rate
- a week
- £194.60
- every 4 weeks
- £778.40
- a month on average
- £843.27
- a year
- £10,119.20
PIP is paid every 4 weeks, so a year holds 13 payments; the monthly figure spreads 52 weeks across 12 months. Rates for 2026/27 apply from April 2026.
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Source: GOV.UK, PIP: how much you'll get (2026/27 rates)
One restriction runs the other way. If you get the LCWRA amount, you cannot also get the carer's element for caring for someone else. What a PIP award can add to Universal Credit, including the carer's element and the disabled child addition, is set out under extra amounts.
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Work Out UC Back Pay After an LCWRA Decision
Universal Credit back pay after an LCWRA decision is the difference between what you were paid and what you should have been paid, assessment period by assessment period. Each period uses the LCWRA amount in force for it: £423.27 for periods that started before 6 April 2026, and £429.80 or £217.26 for periods that started on or after that date. You can work out your universal credit back pay from the monthly shortfall shown on your statements.
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