The short answer
The disposable capital limit is £8,000, and being on a benefit does not exempt you. But three rules reduce what counts: the mortgage on your home comes off, up to £100,000 of any asset you are actually arguing about is ignored, and if you are 60 or over on a low income a sliding scale ignores up to another £100,000.
Key points
- £8,000 disposable capital, for every kind of civil legal aid except immigration representation.
- No benefit passports the capital test. Universal Credit gets you through income only.
- Up to £100,000 of a disputed asset is disregarded. This is the rule that most changes the answer in a divorce.
- At 60 or over on a low income, up to a further £100,000 can be ignored.
- Your pension is not capital for this purpose, though it is very much an asset in your divorce.
The figures
The capital limit, and the extra allowance if you are 60 or over
The disposable capital limit is £8,000 for every kind of civil legal aid except immigration representation. Being on a benefit does not get you past it. Capital is assessed in every case.
If you are 60 or over and your monthly disposable income, ignoring anything your savings earn, is under £315, some of your capital is ignored on a sliding scale.
| Monthly disposable income | Capital ignored |
|---|---|
| On a passporting benefit, or up to £25 | £100,000 |
| £26 to £50 | £90,000 |
| £51 to £75 | £80,000 |
| £76 to £100 | £70,000 |
| £101 to £125 | £60,000 |
| £126 to £150 | £50,000 |
| £151 to £175 | £40,000 |
| £176 to £200 | £30,000 |
| £201 to £225 | £20,000 |
| £226 to £315 | £10,000 |
| Over £315 | Nothing |
Source: regulation 41 of the Civil Legal Aid (Financial Resources and Payment for Services) Regulations 2013, and keycard 62 for the £8,000 limit. Checked 5 August 2026.
What counts as capital
Money and things that could be turned into money: bank and savings accounts, ISAs, premium bonds, shares and investments, cryptocurrency, money owed to you, the surrender value of an investment-linked insurance policy, valuable items, a second property, and the equity in the home you live in.
Your pension is not treated as capital in the legal aid assessment, which surprises people. That does not make it irrelevant to your case; a pension is often the largest asset in a divorce. It just is not counted here.
Personal possessions of ordinary value, your clothes, household furniture and the tools of your trade are not counted.
How your home is treated
Three deductions, applied in this order, and the order matters.
- The mortgage comes off first, to establish the equity.
- Then, if the house is the thing in dispute, up to £100,000 of your share of that equity is disregarded as the subject matter of the dispute.
- Then a further equity disregard of up to £100,000 applies to whatever is left.
Between them, those can take a very substantial house out of the calculation. If you have been told you are ineligible because of equity in a house you are divorcing over, ask specifically whether the disputed asset disregard was applied.
The figures
Assets you are arguing about can be ignored, up to £100,000
This is the rule that surprises people most. If the house or the savings are the very thing in dispute, the Legal Aid Agency can leave a large part of them out of the calculation. It is called the subject matter of the dispute disregard.
| Rule | How it works |
|---|---|
| Maximum ignored | £100,000 |
| What it applies to | Capital only. Income can never be treated this way |
| What counts as in dispute | An asset actually being claimed in the proceedings, not simply one you own |
| A jointly owned asset in dispute | You are treated as owning half of it |
Where the family home is in dispute, three things are done in this order: the mortgage is taken off to find the equity, then up to £100,000 of your share of that equity is ignored as the disputed asset, then a further equity disregard of up to £100,000 is applied to whatever is left.
Source: Lord Chancellor’s guidance on determining financial eligibility for controlled work and family mediation, section 7.4. That is the right source for mediation. The Means Assessment Guidance covers certificated work and says so. Checked 5 August 2026.
You may qualify
A jointly owned house in dispute is treated as a 50 per cent share. So on a house with £180,000 of equity, your share is £90,000, all of which can fall inside the £100,000 disputed asset disregard.
That is not a promise about your case. It is the reason not to assume.
If you are 60 or over
There is a separate and generous disregard, on a sliding scale tied to your monthly disposable income ignoring anything your savings earn. At the top of the scale £100,000 of capital is ignored.
Someone aged 60 or over who receives a passporting benefit is treated as having nil disposable income, which puts them straight into the top band. The full table is in the box above.
Common and costly mistake
Moving money before you apply. Giving savings to a relative, paying down someone else’s debt or making an unusual large purchase in order to get under the limit is treated as deprivation of capital, and the Legal Aid Agency can assess you as though you still had it. It also has to be disclosed in your financial disclosure, where it will look worse than the original balance ever did.