A cohort of pensioners have been informed they cannot access Pension Credit – regardless of how modest their earnings may be. According to Age UK, Pension Credit is an income-assessed benefit available to those beyond State Pension age experiencing financial hardship.

It supplements a recipient’s earnings to a guaranteed threshold which presently stands at £227.10 for single claimants or £346.60 for couples. It may additionally unlock access to further support including assistance with medical and housing expenses.

Nevertheless, the regulations stipulate that someone within a partnership cannot claim if their partner has not yet reached pension age, presently set at 66. Liberal Democrat MP Liz Jarvis questioned this provision and its consequences for those in a “mixed age” partnership whilst experiencing a low income.

In a letter to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions she enquired “what assessment” the Department had conducted “of the potential impact on levels of pensioner poverty among mixed-age couples of the requirement that both members of a couple must have reached State Pension age in order to be eligible for Pension Credit or pension-age Housing Benefit.”

Responding on behalf of the Department, Stephen Timms, the Minister of State for Work and Pensions, maintained the regulations were “important”. Within his written response, he stated: “Ensuring that individuals can get into, progress and stay in work is important in helping them to continue saving for their own retirement and contribute to the wider economy.

“The requirement for mixed-age couples to seek financial support from the working-age social security system until both members of the couple reach State Pension Age ensures that, once in receipt of Universal Credit, the younger partner can access the same employment support that is available for customers below State Pension Age, including dedicated employment support for customers over the age of 50. The pension-age partner is placed in the no-work related requirements group.

“The Government recognises the critical role Universal Credit has to play in tackling poverty and making work pay and is taking important steps to support people with their living costs. For the first time ever, we have introduced a sustained above inflation increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance for all claimants. From April 2026, this will see the standard allowance uprated by 3.8%, followed by a further 2.3%.”

Before 2019, partnerships comprising individuals of different ages – where one had reached pensionable age whilst the other remained below it – were permitted to select between claiming Pension Credit or working-age entitlements. However, in 2019 the Government altered this arrangement, meaning they would henceforth be classified as a “working age” household for means-tested support purposes.

At the time, Age UK condemned the policy as “unfair”, cautioning that it would significantly affect pensioners whose partners are younger. The charity warned it would leave pensioners in a position where they would be financially better off living independently and claiming Pension Credit rather than cohabiting as a couple and receiving Universal Credit.

Earlier this year, Independent Age, a charity tackling financial hardship in later life, urged the government to scrap the rule entirely. The organisation revealed that government data indicated affected couples could be losing around £5,900 a year, with some households losing as much as £7,000.

Independent Age Chief Executive, Joanna Elson CBE said: “Our helpline received a call from a 79-year-old who was unable to claim Pension Credit because their partner is 59. Under the mixed-age couples rule, they will have to wait until they are 87 before they can access this life-changing financial support.

“The UK Government has created a flawed system where two people of the same age can be treated completely differently just because one has a younger partner.”

The charity is pressing the UK Government to overturn the mixed-age couples rule, allowing couples to access pensioner benefits as soon as the older partner reaches State Pension age. She continued: “The mixed-age couples rule is unfair and must end. It is wrong that older people on a low-income with younger partners are locked out of vital financial support, forcing them to wait years for entitlements like Pension Credit. Independent Age supports couples where the younger partner is in low-paid employment or unable to work due to health conditions, or due to caring for their older partner. This rule risks pushing more older people into deep financial hardship.

“Who you fall in love with and choose to spend your later years with should not determine how much financial support you receive. Far too many older couples are forced to live on tiny incomes because of this rule. It’s time for the UK Government to reverse it.”

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