Urgent Advice: Inheritance due for payment—any legitimate options on timing vis-à-vis benefits?

Rinchen

A person on means-tested benefits is due to receive an inheritance from the sale of a property, with completion scheduled for 30 June. The lump sum will be paid into a shared bank account held in the name of another beneficiary for administrative purposes (mainly working out expenses paid over the past year for upkeep of the property).

The inheritance amount will surpass the £16,000 capital limit for benefits.

The question is not about avoiding the money (infringing on deprivation of capital/assets rules must be avoided at all costs), but about whether there is any legitimate and DWP-compliant way to delay the receipt of the funds (even briefly, e.g. until around 6 July) that would be acceptable from a DWP perspective.

Some questions are:

• When does inheritance count for DWP purposes – on completion, when the money is received, or when it is actually available to the person?
• If there is a short administrative delay in the money being transferred, is that acceptable in any circumstances?
• Are there any normal, legitimate processes (banking, transfer timing, etc.) that affect when money is classed as having been 'received' or 'possessed'?
• How are deprivation of capital rules applied in cases where timing of receipt is involved?
• Can you suggest any sources who could discuss the situation confidentially before the transfer happens (e.g. CAB, Involve NW, Money Helper, welfare rights advisers, DWP helplines, etc.)?

Any advice or suggestions asap would be most helpful and appreciated.

Worried_fool

Why does that week make so much difference?

Rinchen

It's a question about what the rules are and how to find out.

Rinchen

Thank you for your response, Worried_fool - I may have misunderstood your enquiry. If you meant why does the person need a week's extension, I don't know specifically, but the person mentioned it will have a decisive impact on another process that they are navigating. Longer than a week would be ideal, but at least a week would at least be a major help.

RAS

Who is the executor? The beneficiary will receive their inheritance when the executor transfers this to the beneficiary's account.

The beneficiary needs to report to DWP savings are held on the last day of the (monthly) assessment period. Money received and spent between the first and last date of an assessment period are not counted unless the DWP consider the expenditure deprivation of assets.

So if the beneficiary is to receive £18k and owes £2.5k in arrears and debt, timing the payment to the beneficiary could make a difference.

Transfer it 2 days before the end of the assessment period and they are likely to lose UC and need to reapply. Transfer it at the beginning of the assessment period and pay off the arrears over the next 3 weeks and they will lose some UC but the claim will be kept open.

Brie

Wherever advice is given (even here) I suggest it must be treated with some caution. I know that DWP helplines aren't always helpful or accurate and the same applies to CAB and the rest. That said I think there's a better defence if the wrong advice is received from DWP and you can say "but Bob told me on <date> when I called <phone number> at <time> that the following rule applies."

How much will the inheritance surpass the limit? Are there outstanding debts that could be paid off with it? Essential purchases required (i.e. new cooker etc)?? Timing something like that may resolve some of the problem at least.

poseidon1

Pertinent information is in the OP's other posts.

Specifically he is not an executor and does not appear to have a particularly friendly relationship with the executors. Curiously he says at one point that these executors ' are no longer involved ' which begs the question who exactly is handling the mechanics of the property sale, and eventual estate distribution.

Be that as it may, I would expect given the apparent fractious and contentious nature of this estate matter, that there would be no substantial distributions until formal estate accounts have been completed and circulated to the interested parties.

If there has been a gain on sale of the property from date of death, executors ( or their appointed advisers) have up to 60 days to report and pay any tax due. They may choose to utilise that period rather than pay quickly.

Similarly if IHT has been paid in the past using the instalment option, then the outstanding balance will be met from the property proceeds and this will take priority over any interim distributions to beneficiaries.

Whatever the significance of the 6 July, the liklihood of a substantial distribution to a beneficiary 6 days after the property completion would seem remote, unless the OP has received information from the executors (or their advisers) to the contrary.

OP do you have good reason to believe an early estate distibution in your favour is on the cards?

Newly_retired

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82042907#Comment_82042907

DWP staff are unlikely to know the full details of regulations and are not trained to give advice.

CAB staff are better placed, but any issue about Deprivation of Assets will be decided by a DWP decision maker after the event. They won’t give advice about a situation in advance.

it is my understanding that a claimant is only required to inform DWP once they have actually received an inheritance which takes them over the limit once it has actually been received.
RAS has given good advice re UC and poseidon’s thoughts on timing make good sense.

Rinchen

Many thanks to you all for these helpful responses. I am unfamiliar with the language and bureaucratic specificities involved. I've checked and can now add further details that may be helpful in fine-tuning the responses.

The Estate administration (which was the eldest cousin on the paternal side) has already been completed so the property passed outside the estate's remit. The Executor forced the transfer using a highly threatening legal letter commissioned using the Estate's resources. The ultimatum included threats to throw all the house contents into a skip and auction off the property if compliance on the strict/tight transfer of equity from the property was not met. For reference, there will be zero communication with the Executor or that whole side of the family ever again.

Following that nightmare scenario, the property title was transferred into the names of the two children in mid-June 2025 and was immediately put on the market the same day.

The property is due to be sold by the co-title holders (managed by the elder sibling due to the serious ill health of the other person involved) and the completion date is set for 30 June or shortly thereafter. Each owner is receiving their share of the sale proceeds, which is a 50-50 share after the deduction of expenses. There haven't been any gains over the period the house has been on the market. The sale value will be transferred on completion to a shared bank account in the other (non-benefits) sibling. The inheritance will be significantly over the £16k limit so any expenses or essential purchases will not have a substantial bearing on that aspect.

I'll try to find out the significance of the 6 July. The conveyancing solicitor has apparently requested a brief extension as he is now short on time to complete the paperwork involved, so that may alleviate the situation slightly, though it would be helpful to know the rules as to timing the eventual payment to the younger sibling.

Regarding poseidon1's comment regarding 'the likelihood of a substantial distribution to a beneficiary 6 days after the property completion would seem remote,' one question is what are the legitimate reasons for a delay in this scenario?

silvercar

"The sale value will be transferred on completion to a shared bank account in the other (non-benefits) sibling. "

Presumably the benefit reliant sibling has given consent for this to happen, otherwise the siblings should each receive their entitlement directly.

How quickly money passes between siblings only needs to be reasonable, it doesn't need to be instant. If the sibling transferring needs to visit a branch to do the transfer eg the amount is greater than their online limit, then it can be done within their convenience eg if they are busy working/ life then it may take a few days.

If the benefit reliant sibling is receiving from the administrator, then there could be a delay if they need to provide ID. Or even if they haven't yet provided bank details.

sheramber

Can you confirm that you said the house

Has already been transferred to the beneficiaries names?

Does the value not count from that date. rather than at completion or when money received?