Child benefit is money paid to parents who are responsible for a young adult - we explain how much it is worth and how can claim it.
Recent figures issued by the charity Turn2Us show a staggering 503,000 families are missing out on unclaimed child benefit payments worth a collective £775million.
This works out at an average payment of around £1,540 per family - although in reality, this figure will vary widely depending on how many children you have.
The warning from charity Turn2Us claims parents don’t realise they’re able to claim the support.
Here is everything you need to know:
How much is child benefit and who is eligible?
If you or your partner earn less than £50,000 per year, you can claim the full amount of child benefit.
You get £21.15 a week for your first child, then any other child you have qualifies for £14 a week each.
Over the year, if you have just one child, this would amount to more than £1,000.
To claim child benefit, you need to live in the UK and be responsible for someone under the age of 16, or under 20 if they’re in approved education or training.
Being responsible for a child usually means they live with you, or you pay at least the same amount as child benefit towards looking after them - for example, by paying for food, clothes or pocket money.
If two people look after a child, only one person can claim child benefit.
Child benefit is applicable to children who are fostered and adopted, and in certain circumstances where you're looking after a child for a friend or relative.
If you foster a child, you can make a claim as long as the local council is not paying anything towards their accommodation or maintenance.
Or if you are adopting a child, you can apply for the benefit as soon as any child you’re adopting comes to live with you - although in certain circumstances you can start claiming before this.
If you or your partner earn over £50,000, you can still claim child benefit but you may be liable for a tax charge, known as the "High Income Child Benefit Charge".
Earn over £60,000 and you'll need to pay back 100% of your child benefit - meaning you don't get anything.
What happens to my child benefit if circumstances change?
Your benefit payment may be affected if your child goes into hospital for more than 12 weeks, or care for more than eight weeks.
Or if your child goes to live with someone else, you’ll continue to get child benefit for eight weeks - as long as no one else claims it.
Child benefit also continues for 20 weeks if 16 or 17 year olds leave education or training and register with the armed services or a government-sponsored careers service.
You’ll stop receiving child benefit if your child:
- Starts paid work for 24 hours or more a week and is no longer in approved education or training
- Starts an apprenticeship in England
- Starts getting certain benefits in their own right
How to claim child benefit
You can claim child benefit as soon as you’ve registered the birth of your child, or they come to live with you.
To start your claim, you'll need to fill in child benefit claim form CH2 and send it to the Child Benefit Office.
The address is: Child Benefit Office (GB), Washington, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE88 1ZD.
If your child is adopted, you'll need to send their original adoption certificate with the form.
