DWP: Universal Credit claimants must urgently check £1,200 bonus eligibility - or risk missing out

The scheme from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) offers a 50p bonus for every £1 saved over four years, up to a maximum bonus of £1,200.

Universal Credit claimants are being urged to double-check their eligibility for a hefty £1,200 bonus as time is running out to secure this extra cash.

The Help to Save scheme, established by the government to promote saving among benefit recipients, grants a generous 50p reward for each £1 tucked away over four years, topping at an impressive £1,200 bonus. With the government's full backing, all savings in the program are completely protected.

Launched originally in 2018, and with its tenure extended just last year to April 2025, families have a mere seven months to set up one of these valuable accounts.

Chatting to The Sun, interactive investors Senior Personal Finance Analyst Myron Jobson said: "On paper, Help to Save is a great initiative to help instil a culture of savings among the nation's most cash-strapped individuals. But for those who've felt the full force of the cost-of-living squeeze, the priority has been to stay above the breadline."

Mr Jobson added: "For those who can afford it, a 50% savings bonus is too good a carrot to pass up."

Thrifty Brits can tuck away anywhere from £1 to £50 monthly into their accounts and will bag a government top-up even if they need to dip into the funds. Toss in a generous 50p for each quid saved, and you've got someone stashing the peak of £50 every month pocketing a nifty £25 on the house, totting up to £300 over a year, reports Birmingham Live.

This essentially spells out that anyone savvy enough to squirrel away £2,400 across four years could net a tasty £1,200 bonus courtesy of the government coffers. Even though there's chatter about the scheme potentially stretching beyond April, newcomers angling for that headline sum should remember that its not an immediate windfall.

The ever-savvy Myron didn't miss a beat, highlighting that bonuses are stuffed into savers' accounts after two years, with a second helping at the four-year mark. His words were: "Remember, the bonuses are paid after the first two years and again at the end of the four-year period."

He added, laying out the timeline: "As such, the first bonus of £175 would be paid two years from the account opening date, which would be in October two years later." Hence, if you jump on the bandwagon before this month wraps up, you're in line for £175 of government freebies - mind you, that won't hit your pocket until October 2026, so patience is key here.