Polygamy is illegal in Britain. But the Government is handing out extra taxpayer-funded welfare payments linked to polygamous marriages, and has quietly increased them again this year.
New Department for Work and Pensions figures reveal that payments for “additional spouses” in certain recognised polygamous households will rise from £119.50 to £125.25 a week from April 2026.
The increase was buried in the Government’s latest annual benefits uprating tables, which also show the amount for a claimant and first spouse in a polygamous marriage rising from £346.60 to £363.25 per week.
The revelations sparked fury online after Conservative MP Katie Lam highlighted the issue on X.
She wrote:
“Polygamy has never been normal in Britain.
And yet the Government has just committed to giving even more taxpayer money to people in polygamous marriages.
If you come to this country, you should abide by our norms. You certainly shouldn’t get paid extra for failing to do so.”
And official figures show her claim is correct.
The Government does still maintain a welfare category covering “additional spouses” in some polygamous marriages legally contracted overseas in countries where the practice is permitted.
While polygamous marriages conducted in Britain are illegal, longstanding benefit rules allow certain foreign marriages to be recognised under legacy welfare schemes including Pension Credit and Housing Benefit.
Ministers insist the arrangements are tightly limited and mostly historical.
In a parliamentary answer, the Government said rules introduced in 1988 restrict eligibility to people who entered such marriages legally overseas before coming to Britain.
The Department for Work and Pensions has also stressed that Universal Credit does not recognise polygamous households.
But critics say the existence of the payments at all exposes a glaring contradiction at the heart of Britain’s immigration and welfare systems.
For years, ministers have argued that migrants coming to Britain should integrate, respect British values and obey British law.
Yet hidden inside the benefits system are provisions that still accommodate family arrangements fundamentally at odds with British legal norms.
The Government has argued there is “no financial benefit” overall compared with additional adults claiming separately.
But that explanation is unlikely to calm growing public anger over what many see as a symbol of a state unwilling to draw clear cultural red lines.
The number of households affected is believed to be relatively small.
Even so, at a time of soaring taxes, stretched public services and pressure on family budgets, many voters will ask a simple question:
Why is Britain still uprating taxpayer support linked to a practice that Britain itself bans?
