The documentation that refugees now need to apply for Universal Credit (UC) has changed. Refugees will now be able to apply and access UC with their Asylum Registration Card (ARC) and Home Office Decision Grant letter.
The Home Office has remained adamant that they are not going to revert to their earlier policy, which said that the 28-day notice period after which asylum protection would cease would start upon receiving a biometric residence permit (BRP). However, the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), when faced with a Freedom of Information (FOI) request for their “updated Universal Credit guidance on Refugees and Asylum Seekers, specifically in relation to the update confirming acceptable evidence for refugees who haven’t yet received their Biometric Residence Permits”, provided a different position.
Their response to the FOI request stated that the primary documents required can now include an ARC and Home Office Decision Grant letter however, one cannot be accepted without the other. When a refugee does not have a BRP, they can utilise these documents together to establish their identity if the information is the same and verified by the Home Office. Nonetheless, the position prior to the Home Office change is still incorrectly stated in the DWP’s guidance to refugees and needs to be quickly corrected to reflect the recent update.
It has been said that the update might have been impacted by the ruling in Ngoc Hong Thi Bui, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2023] EWCA Civ 566, whereby in this instance, the Court of Appeal declared that it was illegal for the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to implement a general policy that prevents advance payments to applicants who did not have a National Insurance Number.
Together, these modifications should mean that refugees can now apply for UC using their ARC and grant letter, and that payments will be sent on account by the DWP while the case is being processed.