Tens of thousands of people are fraudulently claiming benefits from overseas and costing British taxpayers almost half a billion pounds a year, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) data shows that £423 million in benefits was claimed by fraudsters living outside the UK in 2024/25.
The shocking figures sparked calls for ministers to 'get a grip' on benefits cheats and are a blow to the Government after reports it had saved £17 million by stopping 2,600 people wrongfully claiming Child Benefit while living abroad.
Experts warn this is 'just the tip of the iceberg' and that a tougher approach is needed to address the scale of the scandal.
The DWP figures show that £178 million was lost to people fraudulently claiming Universal Credit (UC) while living abroad, with £108 million of Pension Credit pocketed by overseas fraudsters.
