Accredited official statistics

Child Benefit Statistics: annual release, data at August 2024

Published 23 April 2025

Overview

This National Statistics publication includes details of the number of families claiming Child Benefit at 31 August 2024, the number and ages of children within those families and their geographical location. Population counts at country and English region level are shown, as well as by local authority and parliamentary constituency (Westminster and Scottish) in the United Kingdom.

This publication also includes Child Benefit small area statistics, published separately prior to 2022 in the Child Benefit small area statistics collection. These include annual geographical estimates at Lower Super Output Area, Super Data Zone and Data Zone in the United Kingdom. National Statistics are accredited official statistics.

Contact details

For queries or feedback on this publication, please contact:

• G Heyes

For press queries, please contact:

• HMRC Press Office

Main points

On 31 August 2024, there were:

• 7.62 million families claiming Child Benefit, with 6.91 million families in receipt of Child Benefit payments. Whilst the number of families in receipt of payment has remained steady, there has been a decrease of 30,000 families claiming child benefit compared to August 2023
• 712,000 families who chose to opt-out of receiving payments
• 12.91 million children in families claiming Child Benefit, and 11.86 million children in payment recipient families. This is a decrease of approximately 129,000 children in claiming families and a decrease of 62,000 children for whom payment is received since August 2023
• 1.06 million children in families who had opted out of payments

A breakdown of the number of families and children claiming Child Benefit and in receipt of payments by region at August 2024 is shown in figure 1.

Figure 1: The number of families and children within those families claiming and in receipt of Child Benefit payments

(Source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

About the data in this release

The latest data on Child Benefit for August 2024 shows a continued downward trend in the number of families claiming Child Benefit.

The rate of decline in families claiming Child Benefit in the latest year is at 0.4%. This is slightly lower than the previous 2 years which saw declines of 0.6%.

The number of families receiving Child Benefit payments has remained steady since the previous publication. This is a change in trend seen in previous years where the number of families receiving payments reduced by 1.5% between August 2022 and August 2023 and 1.1% between August 2021 and August 2022.

The number of families opting out of payments has declined for the first time since the introduction of the High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) in 2013, reducing by 3.9% compared to August 2023. Changes to the HICBC threshold were introduced on 6 April 2024. These changes are reflected in this publication. Details on the HICBC and threshold changes can be found in the High Income Child Benefit Charge section below.

What’s new in this publication?

The tables accompanying this publication contain an additional time series breakdown of Self-Assessment taxpayers with a HICBC liability, providing details of the number of taxpayers in the United Kingdom with a HICBC liability and the value of the HICBC tax revenue starting from the tax year 2012 to 2013 until 2022 to 2023, the latest full tax year where data is available

Trends in Child Benefit claimants 2014 to 2024

Figure 2: The number of families claiming Child Benefit and those in receipt of payment, August 2014 to August 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Prior to August 2013, there was significant growth in the number of families claiming and in receipt of Child Benefit payments, in line with an increasing population. However, following the introduction of the HICBC in January 2013, there has been a steady decline in both the number of families claiming Child Benefit and those in payment.

As shown in figure 2, in August 2024:

• there were 7.62 million families claiming Child Benefit for 12.91 million children, and 6.91 million families in receipt of Child Benefit payments for 11.86 million children
• the number of families receiving Child Benefit payment is at its lowest level since HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) began producing these statistics in 2003
• The rate of decline has slowed this year. At Spring Budget 2024, the threshold at which a person became liable for the HICBC was raised from £50,000 to £60,000. This is likely to have levelled the downward trend seen in families in payment since the introduction of the HICBC in January 2013

High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC)

In January 2013, the Government introduced the HICBC. This tax charge does not affect a child’s entitlement but the Child Benefit recipient will be liable to repay some or all of their entitlement if their income (or their partner’s income) exceeds a certain threshold. Child Benefit recipients affected by the HICBC can choose to “opt-out” of receiving payments and negate the need to pay the HICBC.

Between January 2013 and April 2024, the threshold at which a person becomes liable for the HICBC was fixed at £50,000 per year.

On 6 April 2024, the net income threshold for the HICBC was increased to £60,000. For those with income between £60,000 and £80,000, the rate at which the HICBC is charged is equal to 1% for every £200 of income that exceeds £60,000. This means that if the Child Benefit recipient (or the recipient’s partner) earns £80,000 or more, they are liable to repay their entire Child Benefit entitlement.

See more information on the HICBC and HICBC changes.

For the latest statistics on the amount of money paid in HICBC liability, see statistics on HICBC section below.

Figure 3: The number of families opted out of receiving Child Benefit payments, August 2014 to August 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

From 2013 to 2023, the total number of families opting out of Child Benefit payments increased year on year. August 2024 saw an end to this trend, with the number of families opting out of payment declining for the first time, as shown in figure 3. This change in trend is likely due to the changes made to the HICBC bringing more families under the income threshold.

In August 2024:

• 712,000 families chose to opt-out of payments, a decrease of 4% since August 2023

Take-up rate of Child Benefit

Families have 3 choices when their child is born. They can claim Child Benefit and receive payments, they can claim and opt-out of payments or they can choose not to claim. The Child Benefit take-up rate represents the proportion of all children eligible for Child Benefit who are being claimed for (including those children within families that have opted out of receiving Child Benefit payments).

The Child Benefit take-up rate is calculated using 3 separate data sources. These are:

• administrative data: used to calculate the caseload – the estimated number of children and young people for whom Child Benefit is being claimed regardless of whether those claiming on their behalf have opted out of Child Benefit payments as part of HICBC
• population data: national and sub-national population estimates and projections produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This publication uses updated population projections which include figures calculated using the latest census data and are subject to revision. These have varied by age of child which will in turn affect the take-up rates of Child Benefit by age
• the Labour Force Survey (LFS): a quarterly household survey which covers education and training activities of young people aged 16 and over

Rates are estimated by dividing administrative data totals by population figures. For those aged 17 to 19, the population figures are first multiplied by participation rates in full-time non-advanced education, estimated from the LFS. Figures are calculated at May rather than August due to uncertainty about whether 17 to 19 year olds in August have left education or are temporarily absent.

Figure 4: The percentage of eligible children for whom Child Benefit is claimed, May 2014 to May 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data, ONS population data, and LFS)

Key points to note from figure 4:

• since 2013 the take-up rate of eligible children for whom Child Benefit is claimed has reduced steadily year on year, from a high of 97% in 2012 to its lowest level in 2024 of 88%
• the overall reduction is likely related to the introduction of the HICBC in 2013, which meant that some families no longer claimed Child Benefit, knowing that they would need to pay a tax charge or opt-out of payment. From 2020 to 2022, the impact of the pandemic may have had a further effect in pushing down claims

Figure 5: The percentage of eligible children for whom Child Benefit is claimed by individual age, at May 2024

Age of child	Take-up rate
0	72%
1	77%
2	80%
3	81%
4	84%
5	87%
6	89%
7	91%
8	91%
9	92%
10	93%
11	95%
12	97%
13	97%
14	97%
15	97%
16	90%
17	79%
18	73%
19	44%

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data, ONS population data, and LFS)

Key points to note from figure 5:

• for younger children (aged 11 and under) there are larger proportions for whom Child Benefit is not being claimed. Again, this difference is largely explained by the introduction of the HICBC in 2013, which meant that some families don’t claim Child Benefit, knowing they would either need to opt-out of payment or pay a tax charge
• children aged under 4 have a lower take-up rate, with 72% of 0 year olds, 77% of 1 year olds, and 80% of 2 year olds in Child Benefit claim
• Disruption to official processes (such as birth registrations) and information-sharing for new parents due to the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted decisions around claiming Child Benefit in 2020 and 2021, mainly affecting children aged 3 and 4 in this analysis
• Child Benefit take-up is lower for young people aged 16 and over. Child Benefit can only be claimed for those children aged 16 and over if they are in full-time non-advanced education (FTNAE) and parents or carers may not always re-claim as young people move out of, and back into FTNAE, especially if they have opted out of receiving payment
• further, after the age of 12, National Insurance credits are no longer received and after 16 a young person has already been assigned their National Insurance number. Consequently there is little incentive for families who have opted out of receiving payments to confirm their child is continuing in FTNAE, with such children dropping out of claims
• see more information on FTNAE

Figure 6: The percentage of eligible children for whom Child Benefit is claimed by country and English region, at May 2024

Country and region	Take-up rate
United Kingdom	88%
Yorkshire and the Humber	93%
North West	92%
East Midlands	91%
North East	91%
West Midlands	91%
East of England	87%
South West	86%
South East	83%
London	77%
Wales	93%
Scotland	91%
Northern Ireland	90%

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data, ONS population data, and LFS)

Key points to note from figure 6:

• most regions have a take-up rate above or around the UK rate of 88%
• the East of England, the South West, the South East, and London have rates below this of 87%, 86%, 83%, and 77% respectively. This is likely due to a higher number of families being impacted by the HICBC due to higher  average incomes in those regions
• Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland all experience take-up rates higher than that of the UK rate, between 90% and 93%

Child Benefit statistics by family characteristics

Child Benefit statistics by family size

Figure 7a: The number of families in receipt of Child Benefit payments broken down by family size, August 2014 to August 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Key points to note from figure 7a are:

• since 2013, possibly HICBC related, there has been a steady reduction in the number of families receiving Child Benefit payments across all family sizes, with the largest reductions seen in families with 2 or fewer children, however levels have remained relatively stable for those smaller families over the past 3 years (2 or fewer children)
• at August 2024, there were 3.3 million families receiving Child Benefit payments for 1 child, 2.5 million families with 2 recipient children, and 742,000 families with 3 recipient children. This is a decrease of 230,000, 172,000, and 102,000 respectively since 2014
• families in receipt of Child Benefit for 4 or more children has remained fairly stable. The figure for 2024 currently stands at 270,000

Figure 7b: The number of families opted out of Child Benefit payments broken down by family size, August 2014 to August 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Key points to note from figure 7b are:

• since the introduction of the HICBC in 2013 until 2023, the number of families opting out of Child Benefit payments overall has increased year on year, however there has been variations within different family sizes
• in 2024, the overall number of families opting out of Child Benefit payments has reduced for the first time, again with variations within family size. This is likely due to the changes made to the HICBC in April 2024 bringing more families under the income threshold
• Between August 2023 and 2024 the number of families with 1 child opting out of payment increased slightly (1,000) whilst those with 4 or more children remained stable. The number of families with 2 to 3 children opting out saw a decline of 24,000 and 6,000 respectively
• the number of families with 1 or 2 children account for 58% and 37% of all opt-outs respectively in August 2024 compared to 48% and 37% of families receiving Child Benefit payments respectively
• 5% of opt-out families have 3 or more children, compared with 15% of families in payment. However, those who have opted out of payments may not inform Child Benefit when they have subsequent children since they would not receive any payment, and so any comparisons to those receiving payment should be treated with caution

Child Benefit statistics by age of children

Figure 8: The number of children in families who have opted in and out of receiving Child Benefit payments by individual age at August 2024

Age of child	In payment	Opted out
0	459,870	11,325
1	499,790	18,040
2	537,955	24,015
3	546,470	31,260
4	569,955	37,995
5	597,335	46,580
6	619,250	51,695
7	643,990	57,095
8	667,235	60,580
9	670,405	62,745
10	674,945	64,595
11	693,725	72,090
12	719,600	92,130
13	723,310	94,560
14	715,505	93,490
15	707,915	92,520
16	712,610	92,950
17	540,675	25,090
18	463,465	25,785
19	93,610	1,145

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Key points to note from figure 8:

• the highest number of children in receipt of Child Benefit payments were aged between 12 and 16. The lower number of recipients aged 11 and under is likely due to the introduction of the HICBC in 2013

• the number of children aged 0 in payment is higher than in August 2023, 460,000 compared to 448,000. This is notable in comparison to the decrease between August 2022 and August 2023 of 26,000

• for those aged 17 and over there are fewer children in payment due to the eligibility criteria for this age group
• for opted out families, the lower number of children at ages 11 or younger is likely to be because families subject to the HICBC will have the option of claiming and then opting out of receiving payment or not claiming to begin with
• for children aged 17 and over, there are fewer families registered as having opted out of receiving Child Benefit payments

Figure 9a: The number of children for whom Child Benefit payment is received by age group, August 2014 to August 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Key points to note from figure 9a are:

• the number of children aged 10 and under for whom Child Benefit payment is received has been on a steady downward trend since 2014 and fell by 27% for under 5’s and 8% for those aged between 5 and 10 between August 2014 and August 2024

• the levels for those aged between 11-15 and 16 and over for whom payment is received has seen slight fluctuations since 2014 ranging between 3.3 million to 3.6 million and 1.7 million to 1.9 million respectively

• across all age categories the number of children for whom child benefit payment is received has remained stable since August 2023

Figure 9b: The number of children within families who have opted out of Child Benefit payments by age group, August 2014, to August 2024

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Key points to note from figure 9b are:

• since the introduction of the HICBC until 2023, the number of children within families overall who are opting out of Child Benefit payments increased year on year

• for the first time in 2024, the number of children in opted-out families has reduced. This is likely due to the changes made in April 2024 bringing more families under the HICBC income threshold
• since 2023 the number of children aged under 16 in opted-out families has reduced, with those aged under 5 decreasing by 17%, those aged 5 to 10 decreasing by 6%, and those aged 11 to 15 decreasing by 4%
• the number of children aged 16 and over in opted-out families has increased by 1,000 since last year. This is in comparison to an increase of 13,000 between August 2022 and August 2023, and an increase of 7,000 between August 2021 and August 2022

Child Benefit statistics by geographical location

Figure 10: The number of families who have opted in and out of receiving Child Benefit payments by country and English region at August 2024

Country and region	Families in payment	Families opted out
South East	880,670	161,365
London	845,955	116,455
North West	821,110	59,610
West Midlands	667,785	45,965
East of England	641,760	92,700
Yorkshire and the Humber	607,540	41,085
South West	556,900	54,295
East Midlands	527,560	42,105
North East	284,800	17,380
Scotland	515,160	50,705
Wales	331,940	18,190
Northern Ireland	219,255	11,010

(source data: HMRC Child Benefit administrative data)

Key points to note from figure 10:

• the South East, London, and the North West have the highest number of families in receipt of Child Benefit payments. This is in line with the 2023 mid-year population estimates produced by the ONS
• as well as having the highest number of families in receipt of Child Benefit payments, the South East and London also have the largest number of families opting out of payments, with the North West having considerably lower figures
• this is likely due to a higher number of families being impacted by the HICBC in the South East and London, due to higher average income in those regions

Child Benefit statistics for smaller geographies can be found in the set of tables published with this release.

Child Benefit claimants by sex

For those 6.91 million families in receipt of Child Benefit payments:

• 86% of claimants are women (5.94 million) compared to 14% of claimants who are men (0.97 million)

The same pattern is seen in the 712,000 families who have opted out of receiving Child Benefit payments:

• 84% of claimants are women (600,000) compared to 16% of claimants who are men (112,000)

Since the migration from the Child Benefit Computer System (CBCS) to the Child Benefit System (CBS) in 2021, there have been improvements in the quality of the descriptive information that accompanies Child Benefit data. This has decreased the number of cases in payment with an unknown sex compared to pre-2021 figures.

Statistics on the High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC)

Those who choose to pay the HICBC tax charge will need to pay an amount equivalent to some or all of the Child Benefit that they or their partner is entitled to receive. The statistics in this section relate to the period prior to the threshold changes made in April 2024, when the tax charge applied to Child Benefit recipients or their partners whose incomes were over £50,000 per year, with the charge increasing to the full value of Child Benefit entitlement at £60,000 per year. More details are set out in the background and technical information.

The amount to pay depends on an individual’s ‘adjusted net income’ and the amount of Child Benefit the claimant is entitled to. Adjusted net income is total taxable income minus certain tax reliefs, for example: trading losses (for the self-employed), Gift Aid charity donations and pension contributions.

The table below shows the number of customers earning above the HICBC threshold who continued to receive Child Benefit payments and had a corresponding tax charge liability in relation to the years shown. The year the charge relates to may differ from the year when it was actually paid. The total value of tax charge revenue in relation to each year of liability is also shown. Numbers are based on the most recent information and will increase in response to late tax returns or compliance activity. Based on previous years, we may expect the 2022 to 2023 figures to increase by between 1 to 4% once final self-assessment data has been received. The historic figures shown below have been revised since last year’s publication.

Table 1: The number of Self-Assessment taxpayers with a HICBC liability and value of HICBC tax revenue, 2012 to 2013 tax year to the 2022 to 2023 tax year

Tax year	Individuals who have declared a HICBC liability in each tax year (thousands)	Tax revenue in each financial year (£m)
2012 to 2013ǂ	360	115
2013 to 2014	365	430
2014 to 2015	320	390
2015 to 2016	295	375
2016 to 2017	295	360
2017 to 2018	360	425
2018 to 2019	390	440
2019 to 2020	390	430
2020 to 2021	360	410
2021 to 2022	395	460
2022 to 2023	440	525

ǂHICBC introduced in January 2013

The number of taxpayers declaring a HICBC liability along with the tax revenue received has fluctuated over the years since its introduction. Due to lags in the Self-Assessment system, the latest available year is for 2022 to 2023 when:

• 440,000 individuals paid a total of £525 million of HICBC liability
• of those with a HICBC liability, 76% are men and 24% are women. This is a similar split to 2021 to 2022
• 98.6% of those with a HICBC liability paid income tax at the higher rate or above, compared to 1.4% below the higher income tax rate

Background and technical information

What is Child Benefit?

Child Benefit is a payment that you can claim for your child. It is usually paid every 4 weeks but in some cases can be paid weekly. The payment can be claimed by anyone who qualifies.

As of January 2013, claimants may be liable to a tax charge called the HICBC. This tax charge does not affect a child’s entitlement but the Child Benefit recipient will be liable to repay some or all of their entitlement if their income (or their partner’s income) exceeds a certain threshold.

Between January 2013 and April 2024, there was a lower threshold of £50,000 per year and a higher taper rate, where for every £100 an individual earned in excess of £50,000, the tax charge increased by 1%. This meant that if the Child Benefit recipient (or the recipient’s partner) earned £60,000 or more, they were liable to repay their entire Child Benefit entitlement.

In April 2024 a new threshold of £60,000 per year was introduced where for every £200 an individual earns in excess of £60,000, the tax charge increases by 1%. This means that if the Child Benefit recipient (or the recipient’s partner) earns £80,000 or more, they are liable to repay their entire Child Benefit entitlement.

Child Benefit is paid to those responsible for children (aged under 16) or qualifying young people. The latter includes those who meet one or more of the following:

• in full-time non-advanced education or (from April 2006) on certain approved vocational training courses and who are under 19, or are aged 19 and have been on the same course since their 19th birthdays. (Note: those reaching 19 up to 9 April 2006 ceased to qualify on their 19th birthdays)
• entered for future external examinations, or are in the period between leaving education (or exams finishing) and the week containing the first Monday in September (or similar dates after Easter and in early January, if earlier), and are not in work (there are slight variations for Scotland)
• aged under 18 who have moved directly from full-time education to being registered for work or training with the Careers service or with Connexions

You can receive Child Benefit for a child that does not live with you. However, if your child lives with someone else, you can only receive Child Benefit if:

• you pay towards the upkeep of your child
• what you pay is at least the same as the amount of Child Benefit you get for your child
• the person bringing up your child is not getting Child Benefit for them - if you and another person both claim Child Benefit for the same child, only one of you can receive it

You do not have to be a parent to claim Child Benefit, however you do need to be responsible for a child to qualify.

Awards are also subject to residence criteria being satisfied. Under UK domestic law a family is eligible to receive Child Benefit if they are present and ordinarily resident in the UK. Citizens of European Economic Area (EEA) countries are able to claim Child Benefit as long as they meet the requirements of the right to reside test, which amongst other requirements means that they must generally be in employment, in self-employment, be self-sufficient, or be a student. From 30 June 2021, families from EEA countries were required to apply for European settled status to continue receiving or make a new Child Benefit claim.

There are 2 separate amounts, with a higher amount for your eldest (or only) child and a lower amount for each of your other children. Following a 3.1% rise in tax year 2022 to 2023 and a 10.1% rise in tax year 2023 to 2024, Child Benefit payments have risen by 6.7% in the tax year 2024 to 2025. This has resulted in Child Benefit increasing from £24.00 to £25.60 per week for the eldest child, and for each subsequent child increasing from £15.90 to £16.95 per week.

For further information about who can claim please refer to the HMRC pages on GOV.UK.

Rounding

Some figures have been independently rounded to the nearest 5. This can lead to components not summing to totals as shown.