To view details of your housing benefit or council tax payment, log in to our online portal.
Log in to check your housing benefit claim
(External link)
Help with paying your rent
If you live in Leeds and pay rent you can apply for help towards your rent by claiming Housing Benefit. The amount you get will be based on the housing needs of you, your family and your income. You cannot get Housing Benefit to help with mortgage payments, but you can get advice about this from the Department for Works and Pensions.
If you live in a Bradford postcode area which falls under Leeds Local Authority control (some BD3 and BD4 postcodes) and you are working age with two children or less, you will need to make a claim for Universal Credit for help with your housing costs. If you live in one of these areas you will only be able to claim Housing Benefit if you are a pensioner or have more than 2 children. Please contact us if you are unsure whether to claim Housing Benefit or Universal Credit.
If your rent includes bills, insurance or meals, Housing Benefit will not cover these costs. The amount of Housing Benefit you get depends on:
- the amount of rent you pay
- your income (and your partner’s income if you have one)
- your savings
- the number of children that live with you
- other people in your household and their income (these are called non dependants and for more information see the related page non dependants)
- if you or someone in your family is ill or has a disability and
- how many bedrooms your family needs
How do you work how many bedrooms my family needs?
You are allowed one bedroom for:
- each adult couple
- any other adult (aged 16 or over)
- any two children under 10
- any two children of the same sex under 16
- or any other child
Am I eligible for housing benefit?
Before you complete the
online benefits e-claim external link if you would like to get an idea of what you might be entitled to you can use the
benefits calculator external link.
How do I apply to claim?
You will need to complete the
online benefits e-claim external link. If you need help completing your e-claim, the form includes help buttons which will guide you through the claims process. If you need additional help there are a number of ways you can contact us:
Call 0113 2224404 to speak to an advisor
Visit us at any one of our
One Stop Centres and speak to someone face to face
Alternatively, you can download and print a paper copy of the
benefits claim form (PDF, 2.87MB). You can also download the
new claim information booklet (PDF, 599KB) which tells you about the benefit claim process and the information we need from you. You can get both of these from a
One Stop Centre. Hand your completed form in at a
One Stop Centre.
Self-employment
If you want to claim housing benefit but are self-employed you'll also need to complete our
self-employed income and expenditure form (WORD 62KB) and send it back to us along with any other forms we've asked you to complete.
Backdating rules
From 1 April 2016 the maximum period for which a housing benefit claim may be backdated is one month. This applies to working age only.
For pension age the maximum period for which a housing benefit claim may be backdated is still 3 months.
Discretionary Housing Payment
If you get Housing Benefit but need further help with your rent costs then you can apply for a
Discretionary Housing Payment.
Renting from a private landlord
If you rent from a private landlord your housing benefit will be paid through the Local Housing Allowance scheme. For more information see the
Local Housing Allowance page.
Renting from the council or a housing association
If you are a working age tenant living in a council or housing association property with more bedrooms than your family needs, your housing benefit may be reduced. Working age means below the age when you are eligible to claim pension credit. You can check the age you will be able to claim Pension Credit on the
gov.uk website.
Keeping us up to date - changes in your circumstances
It is important you update us with any relevant changes in your circumstances relating to benefits you're receiving. Please take a look at the
Changes in Circumstances page for more information.
