Explanatory note

This Order amends articles 7 and 9 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (Commencement No. 23 and Transitional and Transitory Provisions) Order 2015 (“the No. 23 Order”), which Order in particular brings into force provisions relating to universal credit in the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (c. 5) (“the Act”) in relation to claims for universal credit that are made on or after certain dates, where certain conditions are fulfilled, beginning with claims that are made on or after 18th March 2015.

The Order amends paragraph (1) of article 7 (transitional provision: claims for housing benefit, income support or a tax credit) to provide that the prohibition in that article on a person claiming housing benefit, income support or a tax credit on any date applies where, if the person made a claim for universal credit on that date, the provisions of the Act would come into force under article 3(1) and (2)(b) or (c) of the No. 23 Order (day appointed for the coming into force of the universal credit provisions), as well as when they would come into force under article 3(1) and (2)(a) of that Order, and makes a slight technical change to the wording of paragraph (1).

The Order also makes a technical change to the reference in paragraph (10) of article 7 of the No. 23 Order, and in paragraph (5) of article 9 of that Order, to provisions relating to income support.