Millions of families are set to receive a much-needed financial uplift in April this year due to an increase in Child Benefit rates. The payments, administered by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), currently stand at £25.60 per week for the first child and £16.95 per week for any subsequent children.
However, from April, these rates will see a 1.7% increase. Under the new scheme, the rate for the first child will rise to £26.05 per week, while the rate for additional children will increase to £17.25 per week, as reported by the Mirror.
Child Benefit is available to those responsible for a child under the age of 16, or sometimes under 20 if they’re in approved education or training. To be eligible, you must live in the UK and the child usually needs to reside with you, or you contribute at least the same amount as Child Benefit towards their care.
There’s no limit to how many children you can claim for, but only one person can claim Child Benefit for each child. If your child is over 16 but still under 20, you can only receive Child Benefit if they’re in approved education or training.
The types of education or training that qualify for continued Child Benefit claims include A-Levels or similar, T-Levels, and Scottish Highers, reports Chronicle Live.
NVQs and other vocational qualifications up to Level 3, home education – if it began before your child turned 16 or after 16 if they have special needs, and traineeships in England are all considered approved education or training. Your child must be engaged in approved education or training for 12 hours or more each week, and courses won’t count if they’re paid for by an employer.
HMRC will send you a letter, asking you to confirm your situation – you must reply to this, otherwise your Child Benefit will stop. If you’re a high earner, you may have to pay back some of your Child Benefit.
You receive the full amount of Child Benefit if you, or your partner, earn less than £60,000 per year. But if one of you earns over £60,000, you have to pay some of the benefit back at a rate of 1% for every £200 you earn over £60,000.
This is known as the High Income Child Benefit Charge and is typically done through self-assessment. This figure is per person, rather than per household – for example, you could both earn £59,000 and still be eligible to keep all your Child Benefit.
If you earn over £80,000, then you need to pay back all of your Child Benefit. More details about the benefit and how it works can be seen on the HMRC website here. It includes information about making a claim.