Cookies
The Universal Credit site puts small files (known as 'cookies') on to your computer or other device to collect information about how you browse the site.
We use cookies to:
- remember the notifications you've seen so that we do not show them to you again
- remember your progress while you're using the online service for security purposes
- measure how you use our service so that we can improve it for you
Important
We do not use cookies to identify you personally.
Cookies we use on Universal Credit
Introductory message
You may see a welcome message when you first visit the Universal Credit site. We've stored a cookie so that your computer or other device knows you've seen it and knows not to show it again.
| Name | Purpose | Expiry |
|---|---|---|
| uc_cookies_policy | Saves a message to let us know that you've seen our cookie message | 1 year |
Using the Universal Credit service
When you register or sign in to Universal Credit, we'll set cookies to remember your progress while you're using the online service. These cookies do not store your personal data and are deleted once you've completed the transaction.
| Name | Purpose | Expiry |
|---|---|---|
| sessionId | This allows us to identify you as an individual user as you move from screen to screen through our service | When you close your browser |
|
uctx uctx-legacy |
This works with the sessionId to increase the security of the service | When you close your browser |
| sessiontfa | This allows us to check when you last signed into your account using a mobile code. | 7 days |
Helping you use our service
To help you move between screens and only see the information you need, we'll set cookies that personalise our service for you. These cookies do not store your personal data and are deleted once you've completed the transaction.
| Name | Purpose | Expiry |
|---|---|---|
| currentTab | For couples, this allows us to remember whose to-do list is being viewed | When you close your browser |
| loadedTimestamp | This allows us to warn you before your session is due to time-out | When you close your browser |
Google Analytics cookies used by our service
We use Google Analytics to collect information on how you use our service so that we can improve it for you.
Google Analytics does not store any of your personal details. It stores data about how you got to the service, the pages you visit and how long you spend on each page.
We do not allow Google to use or share our analytics data.
| Name | Purpose | Expiry |
|---|---|---|
| _ga | This helps us count how many people visit Universal Credit by tracking if you've visited before | 2 years |
| _gat | This manages the rate at which requests are made to Google Analytics from your browser | 10 minutes |
| _gid | This helps us count how many people visit Universal Credit by tracking if you've visited before | 24 hours |
User ID
When you first register on the Universal Credit site a unique user ID (an alphanumeric string) will be assigned to you. We use this user ID to identify you when you sign in to your account.
If you are signed in, we may use your user ID in combination with Google Analytics to track and analyse the pages of the site that you visit. We do this only to better understand how you use the site, with a view to offering improvements for all users of the service.
If you do not accept our cookie policy
If you do not want to accept our cookie policy on your own computer you can:
- use an internet access device in your jobcentre on which cookies have been accepted
- claim Universal Credit over the telephone (only in some circumstances)
Find out more about how to manage or delete cookies.
GOV.UK services
We may link to some GOV.UK services which can set additional cookies and have their own cookies policies.