Interest Free Budgeting Loans from the UK Social Fund is aimed at helping low income residents who need help with certain important expenses. You will need to pay back the loaned amount albeit without interest. You may be able to get a Budgeting Loan if you or your partner have been claiming or getting payment of one of the following benefits for at least 26 weeks such as Income Support, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or Pension Credit.

You can also get the Interest Free Budgeting Loan if you need help to pay for any of the following such as furniture or household equipment, clothing or footwear, advance rent or removal expenses for a new home, traveling expenses, things to help you look for or start work, improving, maintaining or securing your home, repaying hire purchase or other debts you took out to pay for any of the above.


You can apply to borrow between £100 and £1,500. The final amount of Budgeting Loan you get will depend on whether you are single, whether you are a couple, whether you are single or a couple, with children, any existing money you owe to the Social Fund, your ability to repay the loan. The fund you will be awarded usually be reduced by the amount of any savings you or your partner or civil partner have above £1,000 or £2,000 if one or both of you is over 60. The urgency of your need and any health problems you or your family might have will not be taken into account.

The Interest Free Budgeting Loan is usually paid into your bank, building society or other account provider’s account that you have nominated. Your repayments, which are worked out at the time your loan is agreed, are usually automatically taken out of your benefit. If you are not getting benefits, another method will be agreed. You normally have to repay a Budgeting Loan within 104 weeks. The repayments are interest-free which means you only pay back what you borrowed and no more.


A Budgeting Loan award does not count as income and will not affect other benefit you are getting. You can contact Jobcentre Plus or your pension centre and ask them to send you claim form SF500. You can download the claim form from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) website. The form comes with notes to help you fill it in and tell you where to send it. You can also download the leaflet and claim form, ‘How to ask for an independent review’ from the Independent Review Service website.

If you are unhappy with a Budgeting Loan decision, you have the right to ask for a review. You must write to Jobcentre Plus within 28 days of the decision explaining why you think the decision was wrong and ask for it to be reviewed. If, after that review, you still think the decision was wrong, you can ask for a further review by a Social Fund Inspector. The Inspectors are independent from the Department for Work and Pensions. The review process is quick and simple, and should take no longer than 12 days.