Everything about calling Universal Credit from abroad
What the Universal Credit helpline is for
Universal Credit is a monthly payment from the Department for Work and Pensions to help with living costs. GOV.UK gives its helpline as 0800 328 5644, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, with a Welsh language line on 0800 328 1744. The helpline takes claims by phone from people who cannot claim online (GOV.UK also says you cannot apply for Universal Credit if you are already abroad, see below), helps with a claim in progress, and can be asked to backdate a claim. It is also the number to call if you cannot open a bank, building society or credit union account and need another way of being paid. Most day-to-day contact goes through your online account instead, where your case manager and work coach leave messages in your journal.
Universal Credit and time abroad: what GOV.UK says
Universal Credit is for people who live in the UK. GOV.UK states that you cannot apply for it if you are already abroad, and that you cannot get it if you are moving abroad permanently. If you already get it and go abroad, you can keep getting it for one month, as long as you were eligible when you left, stay eligible while you are away, and tell your work coach that you are going. If a close relative dies while you are abroad and it would not be reasonable to come back, that can be extended by one more month. Going outside Great Britain for any length of time is on GOV.UK's list of changes you must report.
Medical treatment, the armed forces and other exceptions
GOV.UK allows up to 6 months abroad if you go for medical treatment, for a period of recovery approved by a medical professional in the UK, or to care for a partner or child who is having treatment, and says you must contact Universal Credit as soon as you know you are going. Civil servants, diplomats and members of the armed forces who are abroad for their work, and whose main home was the UK immediately before, may be able to claim or keep getting Universal Credit; members of the armed forces use a specific address when they apply. Mariners and continental shelf workers can keep it for up to 6 months.
Calling a UK 0800 number from abroad
0800 328 5644 is a UK freephone number. GOV.UK's call charges page lists 0800 calls as free from UK landlines and mobiles, and tells you to check the cost with your provider, particularly when calling from abroad. GOV.UK publishes no international number for the Universal Credit helpline. Dialled as +44 800 from a foreign phone, the call may not connect, depending on your operator.
What Losali does with this line
Losali is an independent dialler that works in a web browser. Your call travels over the internet and Losali's telecom carrier connects it to 0800 328 5644, so the foreign network you are on only carries data and never has to accept a UK freephone number. There is no app to install and no UK SIM card to buy. Minutes are prepaid, there is no subscription, and the rate is shown beside the number before you call.
- Your National Insurance number, if you have one.
- The dates you are away, if you are reporting a trip abroad.
- Your payment date or the journal message you are asking about.
- The UK clock: the line is open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm UK time.
Other ways in
GOV.UK lists your online account as the first way to contact Universal Credit, and changes of circumstances are reported by signing in to it. Relay UK users dial 18001 then 0800 328 5644, and a British Sign Language video relay service is offered. Citizens Advice runs a free Help to Claim service with trained advisers. If you live in Northern Ireland, GOV.UK sends you to the Universal Credit Service Centre instead of this helpline. GOV.UK also warns that you will never be asked to share personal information such as bank details in your journal, by phone, text or email.
What kind of number is this?
Freephone 0800 / 0808. Free to call from inside the UK. Losali shows the price before the call starts.