Divorce and universal credit

[Twinklestar80]

Does anyone know if universal credit affects a divorce settlement? I’m currently a sahm to a 17 month and 5yr old and have just started the process of divorcing my wife and we’ve just started mediation. She is a high earner (£200k+) and controls all the finances (circa £50k in her account)and I’m currently getting by on the little she puts into my account, which currently has £900 in. All the bills are coming out of her account but I’d like to start on the road of becoming financially independent and I was wondering if claiming universal credit will significantly affect the financial settlement? My aim is to get the settlement sorted and start some refresher courses to get back into my career industry but need money to do this.

if you aren’t earning much and you are the primary care giver you can claim benefits. This would form part of your income when you come to disclose your assets and declare your needs. You will still have a low income compared to your ex so you would need either a large capital settlement, spousal support or both.

Normally if your ex was a modest earner asking for spousal support whilst claiming benefits isn’t worthwhile because spousal support is taken into account for means tested benefits. That means that what you gain in spousal support you lose in benefits. It’s not worth trying for spousal support in these circumstances. A larger capital settlement is better. Please note Child support is not taken into account with means tested benefits.

Spousal support might only be needed until you retrain and get a better income.

And it is always better to a larger capital settlement, money in the hand, than rely on someone else’s income. Because their income cannot be guaranteed. And government benefits can be a fickle income stream as well.