How and when we pay your Housing Benefit

If you're a claimant

We'll pay your Housing Benefit into your bank account every two weeks.

This needs to be an account with a high street bank. We can't pay into a Post Office account like some other benefits.

You must then make sure you pay your rent to your landlord.

In some circumstances, we can arrange to pay your Housing Benefit straight to your landlord.

If you're a landlord

You can view your payments on the Landlord Portal. 

If we've arranged to pay a tenant's Housing Benefit straight to you, we'll pay it into your bank account every four weeks in arrears.

If a tenant is over eight weeks behind on their rent, contact us to let us know. You'll need to tell us what they owe and the dates the debt covers.

Remember that the tenant can ask to return to receiving their benefit, rather than it going straight to you. We'll write to you in advance to let you know they want to do this.

Payment dates for 2026 to 2027

This table shows the dates we'll pay Housing Benefit to claimants and landlords.