Almost all eligible households have received their first cost of living payment - if you haven't, here's what you need to know

You are eligible for the payment if you are entitled to any of the following benefits:

• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Universal Credit

If you started to make a claim by 25 April 2022 and the claim ended up being successful, you will be eligible for both parts of the payment.

The second payment of £324 will come in the autumn, but the Government has not yet announced what the qualifying dates will be. However you will be eligible if you're entitled to any of the applicable benefits now but weren't before 25 May, so make sure you claim ASAP to get at least £324.

The deadline to claim pension credit for the first time and qualify for the payment is 18 August, so if you think you (or someone you know) might be eligible, you should apply as soon as possible – see our Pension credit guide for full info.

If you only claim tax credits, your payment will come in September

If you only claim child tax credit or working tax credit, you would have needed to have received a tax credit payment, or an annual award of at least £26, on any day between 26 April and 25 May 2022 to be eligible. If you are, you should get a first payment of £326 in September, followed by a second payment from winter 2022. 

The money will be paid directly into your bank account

If you haven't received your payment and were expecting to get it in July, contact the DWP

If you haven't had a payment yet, this could be for one of several reasons:

• You're still waiting for a decision on your benefit application or appeal - if you're eligible, you'll get the Cost of Living Payment automatically later and don't need to complete the form below.
• Your payment isn't due yet: for example, if you get tax credits you won't get your first payment until autumn - so you don't need to complete the the form below.
• You're not eligible for it, which means you don't need to complete the form below. You can check if you're eligible on Gov.uk. 

If you DON'T meet any of the criteria above but think you're eligible and haven't got your payment yet, you need to let DWP know by contacting it using this form. You'll need to provide your National Insurance number, so make sure you've got this to hand.