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Most people of working age have to apply for Universal Credit if they need help with their rent. For more details, and to make a claim visit Universal Credit on GOV.UK.
For most single people under the age of 35 Housing Benefit is restricted to Shared Accommodation Rate. This applies if your Housing Benefit is worked out using a Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rate or a Rent Officer Decision.
Housing Benefit is restricted to a Shared Accommodation Rate if you:
You can use the bedroom calculator on the Direct Gov website to see if the Shared Accommodation Rate applies to you.
If your Housing Benefit is worked out using a Rent Officer Decision we cannot tell you the exact amount that will apply to you until we receive that decision.
For Housing Benefit that is worked out using Local Housing Allowance please refer to our Local Housing Allowance (LHA) guide.
If you are under the age of 35 and live alone in self-contained accommodation you may be exempt from the shared restriction, if you:
The following only apply if no-one gets Carer's Allowance or the Carer Element of Universal Credit for looking after you, and you get:
You must provide evidence if any of the above apply so that we can work out if you qualify for an exemption.