Child Benefit
What you'll get
There are 2 Child Benefit rates.
| Who the allowance is for | Rate (weekly) |
|---|---|
| Eldest or only child | £25.60 |
| Additional children | £16.95 per child |
You must contact the Child Benefit Office if you’re paid too much or too little.
Any Child Benefit payments you get will count towards the benefit cap. If you’re affected by the cap, you’ll still get the full amount for your Child Benefit payments but your other benefits may be reduced.
If families split up
If a family splits up, you get £25.60 a week for the eldest child.
If you have 2 children and one lives with you and the other lives with
someone else (for example, your ex-partner), you’ll each get £25.60 a week.
If you both claim for the same child, only one of you will get Child Benefit for them.
If you’re entitled to Child Benefit for any other children, you’ll get £16.95 for each child.
If families join together
If you move in with a partner who also claims Child Benefit, you get £25.60 for the eldest child in the household. You get £16.95 for any younger children.
You and your partner can claim for different children. If you live together, you cannot both claim at the higher rate - you may have to pay back some of the money if you do.
You must report the change to your family circumstances.
If you or your partner earn over £60,000
If either your or your partner’s ‘adjusted net income’ is over £60,000 a year, you may have to pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge.
Your adjusted net income is your total taxable income before any personal allowances and less things like Gift Aid. Your total taxable income includes interest from savings and dividends.
If you have to pay the charge, you can still get the other advantages of Child Benefit like National Insurance credits. The charge will not be more than the amount you get from the Child Benefit payments.
Work out if your adjusted net income is over £60,000 using the Child Benefit tax calculator. If it is, the calculator will also tell you how much of a charge you’ll have to pay.
If both you and your partner have an individual income of over £60,000, then whoever has the higher adjusted net income is responsible for paying the charge.
If either you or your partner has an individual income of £80,000 or over, you’ll be charged the same amount as you make through Child Benefit payments. You’ll end up with no extra money from Child Benefit.
You’ll need to fill in a Self Assessment tax return each tax year to pay the charge.
You can make a claim and opt out of getting payments if you do not want to pay the charge. You can still get the other advantages provided by Child Benefit, like National Insurance credits.