TFC12050 - Other customers who cannot make a TFC declaration: Universal Credit recipients

Childcare Payments Act 2014, section 11

On the date of their declaration to TFC, a person must not be receiving Universal Credit (UC) and there must not be a subsisting claim to UC that may result in UC becoming payable to the person, in respect of any assessment period under Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 or any corresponding provisions made for Northern Ireland that includes the date of the declaration, or any period in the 3 months following the date of declaration. For the purposes of TFC, UC is payable to a person in respect of a relevant assessment period if it would be payable were it not for the reduction of the award to nil under UC legislation.

A person should not cancel their UC account before they are sure they are eligible for TFC. If a person is currently claiming UC and wants to apply for TFC instead, they should make an application for TFC (despite not being eligible due to their current UC claim) before cancelling their UC account. This action will confirm if there are any reasons (other than UC) why they might not be eligible for TFC. If their UC account is the only reason they are ineligible for TFC, and there have been no recent changes to their circumstances which may affect their eligibility, they can then decide to cancel their UC account and reapply for TFC.

Although making an application for TFC while knowing you are ineligible due to UC ostensibly makes such parents liable to a penalty under section 42 of CPA 14 HMRC will always use their discretion to take no action under that provision.