Universal Credit claimants in Northern Ireland who meet new earnings thresholds will get free sight tests, optical vouchers and full help with Health Service (HSC) travel and charges from 1 December 2025. The Department of Health signed the regulations on 4 November, working with the Department of Finance on remission and travel.

The instrument, Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland 2025 No. 172, inserts a new “relevant universal credit recipient” category into three sets of rules: Optical Charges and Payments (1997), Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges (2004) and General Ophthalmic Services (2007). In practice, patients who qualify will not pay for a sight test under general ophthalmic services, can receive a voucher towards glasses or contact lenses, and will be covered for eligible HSC travel and charges.

The earnings tests work on two bands. Where a Universal Credit award has no child element, LCW or LCWRA, entitlement applies if there was no earned income or £435 or less in the relevant assessment period. Where the award includes any of those elements, entitlement runs up to £935. A qualifying young person for whom the claimant in the second group is responsible is also covered.

Income is measured per Universal Credit “assessment period”, the monthly cycle used by the Department for Communities. “Earned income” follows the UC definition and does not include income tax, National Insurance, pension contributions or mitigation payments linked to welfare reform. The figure to check is the earned income line on a recent UC statement.

On travel and charges, regulation 5 of the 2004 rules is amended so the same earnings thresholds trigger full payment of HSC travel expenses and full remission of specified Health Service charges. The explanatory note states this sets entitlement “without needing to make a claim”, though patients should still expect to show UC evidence at appointments.

Transitional protection applies. If you incurred costs for glasses, repairs or a sight test before 1 December and would have been eligible under the old rules, you can still be reimbursed or paid after that date. Vouchers issued before the change must be honoured, even if they are processed later.

The Department of Health says it consulted organisations representing ophthalmic medical practitioners and opticians before confirming the changes. The regulations are made under the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972 and were sealed by senior officers Gearoid Cassidy for Health and Maryann Smith for Finance on 4 November 2025.

For families from Derry to Newry, the timing can be as important as the thresholds. A busy month of extra shifts can nudge earnings over £435 or £935, which would pause entitlement for that assessment period. Booking an eye test or submitting travel receipts soon after a quieter month may keep you within the limits.

Opticians and hospital cash offices should now update scripts and signage so staff can check assessment period dates and the earned income figure quickly. This reduces desk‑side confusion and helps patients leave with a clear answer rather than a form to chase.

Readers with relatives across the Irish Sea should note these rules apply to Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland only. England’s NHS has separate arrangements for optical vouchers, sight tests and travel costs, so check local guidance if you are receiving care this side of the water.