Reform UK has pledged to prevent almost all foreign nationals from receiving welfare benefits if the party forms the next government.
Promoting the policy on X, Reform's home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf said welfare and social housing should be reserved for British citizens.
"Reform has announced that ONLY British people will be entitled to British welfare and social housing," Yusuf wrote.
He accused both Labour and the Conservatives of opposing the party's approach.
In a separate post, Yusuf said a Reform government would remove access to Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, Pension Credit, Jobseeker's Allowance, Child Benefit, free childcare and disability benefits from all foreign nationals.
Yusuf said the restriction would also apply to citizens of European Union countries, including people whose existing immigration status currently allows them to claim qualifying benefits.
Reform claims £21 billion saving
Reform estimates that restricting welfare eligibility to British citizens would eventually improve the public finances by approximately £21 billion annually.
However, the £21 billion is the party's projected annual saving by the fifth year of its proposed reforms. It should not be treated as an independently verified figure showing that £21 billion is currently paid to foreign nationals every year.
Yusuf nevertheless presented the figure on X as the amount British taxpayers spend annually on welfare for foreign nationals.
Detailed government information covering the nationality of recipients is not available in a single comprehensive dataset across every benefit included in Reform's proposal. Official Universal Credit statistics also classify claimants according to immigration status rather than simply dividing everybody into British and foreign nationals.
Government figures for June 2025 showed that 83.6% of people receiving Universal Credit were in the UK, Ireland and right-of-abode category, of whom 99.8% were British citizens. Other eligible recipients included people covered by the EU Settlement Scheme, those with indefinite leave to remain and recognised refugees.
Settled EU citizens included
Reform's proposal would reportedly include EU citizens holding settled status. Their rights are protected by the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated when Britain left the European Union.
Removing those entitlements would therefore be likely to require negotiations with the EU and could raise questions about the reciprocal rights enjoyed by British citizens living in European countries.
The party has presented the welfare restriction as part of a broader programme intended to reduce government spending by approximately £50 billion. Separate and highly contentious reforms to sickness and disability support account for another substantial part of its proposed savings.
Limited exemptions from the nationality restriction have reportedly been proposed for payments including the War Widows Pension and Armed Forces compensation.
Social housing pledge
Reform has also previously promised to prioritise British citizens for social housing. Yusuf combined that commitment with the newly announced welfare proposals when describing the party's position on X.
Access to social housing is currently governed by eligibility requirements and individual council allocation schemes; there is no automatic entitlement to a council or housing-association property.
The measures announced by Reform are political proposals and have not been enacted. Their eventual scope, legality and financial effect would depend upon the wording of future legislation, negotiations concerning existing international agreements and any challenges brought before the courts.
Labour and the Conservatives have both criticised Reform's proposals, while Reform argues that the present system places an unacceptable burden on British taxpayers.
The announcement nevertheless establishes a clear dividing line: Reform is promising that, subject to limited exceptions, possession of British citizenship would become a requirement for receiving welfare support under a government led by the party.
Sources
- Zia Yusuf on X: welfare and social housing statement
- Zia Yusuf on X: £21 billion claim
- Zia Yusuf on X: benefits policy announcement
- Reform UK: policies
- ITV News: Reform welfare proposal
- Department for Work and Pensions: Universal Credit immigration-status statistics
- Migration Observatory: migrants in the UK labour market