PolicyEngine / PolicyEngine/policyengine-uk

Update 2026-27 Universal Credit Regulation 36 amounts

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Dominant language
Python
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50
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20h 58m
Merged PRs (30d)
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Description

The new UK EFRS RuleSpec comparator in TheAxiomFoundation/axiom-encode#457 shows PolicyEngine UK 4.11.0 / policyengine-uk 2.88.20 is using forecast-indexed 2026 Universal Credit Regulation 36 amounts rather than the published 2026-27 table amounts encoded in rulespec-uk.

Observed on the full local Enhanced FRS 2023-24 dataset for policy year 2026:

  • UC standard allowance PE monthly values are about 335.30 / 423.26 / 526.30 / 664.39, but RuleSpec Regulation 36 has 338.58 / 424.90 / 528.34 / 666.97.
  • UC child element PE monthly values are about 350.53 and 302.77, but RuleSpec has 351.88 and 303.94.
  • UC disabled child additions PE monthly values are about 164.16 and 512.73, but RuleSpec has 164.79 and 514.71.
  • UC LCWRA/carer/childcare component values show the same pattern for 2026-27 published rates versus forecast/uprated PE values.

This is analogous to the Child Benefit and Pension Credit 2026-27 rate issues found by the same harness: #1739 and #1740.

Repro command from the axiom-encode PR branch:

uv run --with 'policyengine[uk]==4.11.0' axiom-encode uk-efrs-compare \
  --root /Users/maxghenis/TheAxiomFoundation \
  --sample-size 0 \
  --dataset /Users/maxghenis/PolicyEngine/policyengine-uk-data/policyengine_uk_data/storage/enhanced_frs_2023_24.h5 \
  --fail-on-mismatch

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start with the uk-efrs-compare comparator and run the supplied uv command against the Enhanced FRS dataset to reproduce the 2026 mismatches. Trace how Universal Credit Regulation 36 amounts are sourced for 2026-27, then verify that standard allowances, child elements, disabled-child additions, LCWRA, carer, and childcare values match the published table rather than forecasts.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
python
Domain
data
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
48/100

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