Child Benefit payments are set to increase this year by the lowest amount since 2021.
The payment is made to people who are responsible for bringing up a child under 16 or a young person under 20, if they are still in full-time education or on certain approved training courses.
The only exception is if that person, or their partner, earns more than £60k a year, in which case they need to pay some back as income tax.
Paid every four weeks to parents – or weekly if they’re a single parent or on other benefits like Income Support – it’s a huge help for families who are increasingly struggling to make ends meet.
Child Benefit payments are increasing
(Image: PA)
But with the cost of living crisis still hitting families hard, many will be disappointed to find out that this year’s increase will be the lowest it’s been for quite some time.
The payment for one child will increase by 45p a week from £25.60 to £26.05, while for respective children it will rise from £16.95 to £17.25. The increase amounts to just 1.8%, the lowest rise we’ve seen since 2021, when the rates rose by just 0.5% and doesn’t even cover the cost of the cheapest loaf of bread, sold at supermarkets for 47p.
The following year the payments went up by 3%, followed by 10% in April 2023 and then 7% in April 2024.
It means that from April 2025, the annual payment for one child will amount to £1,354 and for two children £2,251.
HMRC has been warning parents not to miss out on the payment, saying that since the earnings threshold increased from £50k to £60k, some families think they earn too much to claim the support.
It is urging families to use the online Child Benefit tax calculator to check their entitlement and apply. Claims can be backdated by up to 12 weeks.
Find out more about the Child Benefit payments on the government website here.