The regulations amended provisions within the Universal Credit, Personal Independence Payment, and Employment and Support Allowance frameworks to exclude work and voluntary activities from being considered reasons for fresh benefit determinations or reassessments.

These Statutory Instruments amend regulations governing Universal Credit (UC), Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) to specify that undertaking work, whether paid or voluntary, does not count as a 'relevant change of circumstances' justifying an immediate reassessment of a claimant's limited capability for work or their ability to carry out daily living/mobility activities.

Established joint liability for National Insurance payments between umbrella companies, recruitment agencies, and clients to prevent tax avoidance in labour supply chains.

These regulations establish joint and several liability for National Insurance contributions (NICs) within labour supply chains involving umbrella companies.

They direct that recruitment agencies or end-clients must pay unpaid Class 1 NICs if the umbrella company employing a worker fails to do so.

The rules apply to 'relevant parties'—typically the agency closest to the client in the contractual chain—and include provisions to prevent avoidance through 'purported' umbrella companies or fraudulent documentation.

The regulations affect recruitment businesses, umbrella companies, and various clients across the United Kingdom who engage workers via intermediaries.

Increased the statutory compensation payments for workers with dust-related diseases and their dependants by 3.8% starting April 2026.

These Regulations increase the lump sum compensation amounts payable to individuals suffering from certain dust-related diseases, such as pneumoconiosis and diffuse mesothelioma, or to their dependants.

They apply to cases in England, Wales, and Scotland where a person first meets the entitlement conditions on or after 1 April 2026.

The instrument raises specific statutory payment limits and replaces the payment tables in the 1988 Regulations to reflect a 3.8% increase across all categories of age and disability percentage.

Statutory Instrument No. 377 of 2026 revised the lump sum payment amounts payable under the 2008 Regulations by 3.8% for mesothelioma victims and their dependants.

These Regulations, made under the authority of the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008, amend the Mesothelioma Lump Sum Payments (Conditions and Amounts) Regulations 2008 by substituting new tables that increase all lump sum payments for individuals diagnosed with diffuse mesothelioma and for their dependants by 3.8 percent, effective from 1st April 2026, applying to cases first diagnosed or claims made on or after this date.

The Regulations enacted the second set of commencement provisions for the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act 2025 on April 1st, 2026, activating sections related to public sector fraud investigation, non-benefit payment enforcement, and associated amendments to social security law.

These Regulations bring into force the second tranche of provisions from the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act 2025 starting on 1st April 2026, specifically activating sections establishing new powers for investigating and recovering losses from fraud against public authorities outside of tax and social security, introducing criminal offences and administrative penalties for non-benefit payment fraud, and extending relevant Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 powers to authorized investigators.

The Order modified Section 4A of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 to assimilate income tax and social security contribution law related to umbrella companies and deemed employment.

This Statutory Instrument, made by HM Treasury with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, modifies section 4A of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 to align social security contribution rules with recent changes made to income tax legislation by the Finance Act 2026 concerning workers supplied through service companies and umbrella companies.

The Order primarily empowers the Treasury to introduce regulations holding certain persons jointly and severally liable with umbrella companies for contributions, and to treat payments made under deemed employment scenarios with 'purported umbrella companies' as earnings for contributions purposes.

The Regulations amend 2001 Social Security Contribution rules to disregard earnings related to specific tax-exempt employee accommodation/supplies and flu vaccinations from contribution calculations starting April 6, 2026.

These Regulations, made by the Treasury with concurrence from the Secretary of State and the Department for Communities, amend the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001 to specify payments that must be disregarded when calculating earnings for the purpose of earnings-related social security contributions.

Specifically, Regulation 2 introduces exemptions for amounts shielded from income tax under sections 316ZA (accommodation, supplies, and services used in employment duties) and 320D (flu vaccinations) of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003, bringing the contributions framework into alignment with the recent tax legislation changes and coming into force on April 6, 2026.

The Order imposed a levy on construction industry employers for defined levy periods between 2026 and 2028, detailing assessment methods, payment terms, and appeal rights for the Construction Industry Training Board.

The Industrial Training Levy (Construction Industry Training Board) Order 2026 establishes a mandatory levy scheme to fund the expenses of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), effective from March 25, 2026, and applicable across England, Wales, and Scotland.

It outlines the specific levy periods (three periods spanning from the commencement date through to March 2028), defines criteria for determining which employers ('construction establishments') are liable based on their engagement duration and financial activities (emoluments and contract payments over defined 'base periods'), and sets out calculation rates (0.35% of emoluments and 1.25% of relevant contract payments).

The Order also details exemptions for organizations below a £150,000 threshold, procedures for assessment notices, payment deadlines, mechanisms for assessment withdrawal or amendment, and the process and time limits for employers to appeal assessments.