Martin Lewis has issued urgent advice for Universal Credit claimants, urging them to take action now.
Speaking on Thursday's ITV Money Saving Show, Martin explained how claimants could save money, even if they were thinking of coming off Universal Credit.
The MoneySavingExpert founder was asked by one viewer, Nigel: "For the Help to Save do you have to be on Universal Credit for the duration of four years?"
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The Help to Save scheme is a type of savings account.
It allows certain people entitled to Working Tax Credit or receiving Universal Credit to get a bonus of 50p for every £1 they save over four years.
Help to Save is backed by the government so all savings in the scheme are secure.
You get bonuses at the end of the second and fourth years. They’re based on how much you’ve saved.
Martin urged anyone on Universal Credit, even if they're thinking of coming off it, to set up a Help to Save account, Liverpool Echo reports.
He said: "So you remember the Help to Save at Gov.uk is a special savings product that those only on lower incomes can get.
"Now what happens is you can put up to £50 in a month and then after two years you get a 50% bonus back based on the highest amount you had in.
"So, let's say you had £600, even if you took it out, you would get £300 paid to you.
"Now the eligibility is when you start so if you're on Universal Credit at the start of it you can get it, even if you get a higher income later and come off you can keep it going.
"So, all those people who were on Universal Credit because of the pandemic and are hoping they'll come off, go and open one now while you can.
"You'll not beat anything like that in the savings market."
