Labour to Lift Two-Child Benefit Cap From April 2026, Extending Support to Larger Families

Overview

• From April 2026, Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit will pay for third and subsequent children after MPs voted last month to remove the 2017 cap.
• A family with four children is cited as receiving about £608 extra a month once the limit is lifted, with around £3,500 a year for a third child.
• The Department for Work and Pensions highlights regional effects, with an estimated 180,000 children in the West Midlands expected to benefit.
• The government frames the policy as an investment to improve life chances and future economic outcomes by reducing child poverty.
• Opposition parties, including the Conservatives and Reform UK, argue the change is unaffordable and say they would reinstate the cap if elected.