Refusing work on Universal Credit due to health

This is a common and important question, and the answer depends on your specific circumstances. Here is a practical breakdown.

General position:

If you are claiming Universal Credit and are placed in the "all work-related requirements" group, you are generally expected to look for work, apply for jobs, and accept reasonable offers of employment. Failure to do so can result in a sanction, meaning a reduction or suspension of your payments.

However, the system does recognise that health conditions and disabilities can limit what work is reasonable for you.

When health may be a valid reason to refuse a job:

1. If you have a health condition or disability, you can ask for a work capability assessment. Depending on the outcome, you may be placed in the "limited capability for work" group, which reduces your work-related requirements, or the "limited capability for work and work-related activity" group, which removes them almost entirely.

2. Even without a formal assessment, your work coach should take your health into account when agreeing your claimant commitment. The claimant commitment should reflect any limitations caused by your health. For example, it might restrict the types of jobs you are expected to look for, the hours, or the travel distance.

3. Under regulation 97 of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013, a sanction should not be imposed if you had good reason for refusing a job. A health condition that genuinely prevents you from doing the specific job offered can amount to good reason.

Practical steps:

1. Gather medical evidence. Get a letter or fit note from your GP or specialist explaining what you can and cannot do, and why the particular type of work would be unsuitable for you.

2. Tell your work coach as soon as possible. Explain your limitations clearly and ask for your claimant commitment to be updated to reflect your health.

3. If you have not already done so, request a work capability assessment. This is done through the UC50 form and a face-to-face or telephone assessment. It can lead to reduced or removed work search requirements.

4. If you refuse a specific job, make sure you explain your reasons in writing or at your next appointment, referencing your health and any medical evidence. Keep copies of everything.

5. If you are sanctioned and you believe it is wrong, you have the right to request a mandatory reconsideration, and then appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Social Entitlement Chamber) if you disagree with the outcome.

Key risks to be aware of:

Simply saying you feel unwell without evidence may not protect you from a sanction. The strength of your position depends heavily on having clear medical evidence and making sure your work coach is aware before you refuse a job.

If you are already in the all work-related requirements group and have not flagged your health condition, the DWP may treat a refusal as non-compliance and apply a sanction, which could last weeks or months depending on how many previous sanctions you have had.

Important note:

The work capability assessment process has recently changed. From September 2023, the government began consulting on reforms to the assessment, and the descriptors and thresholds may be adjusted in the future. For now, the existing WCA framework still applies.

If you are in a situation where you have already been sanctioned or are facing immediate pressure from a work coach, acting quickly and getting medical evidence together is the most important thing you can do.