Thousands of parents are set to lose their Child Benefit payments at the end of this month.
Child Benefit, worth £27.05 a week for the first child and £17.90 for any subsequent children, can be claimed by those responsible for a child under 16, or under 20 if they remain in approved education or training.
Eligible courses include A-Levels, NVQs and home education, however university or BTEC qualifications do not qualify. Once your child departs from their approved education or training, payments will come to a halt.
The next cut-off date for Child Benefit payments to stop is May 31.
More than seven million families currently receive Child Benefit. To be eligible for the payments, the child must ordinarily reside with you, or you must contribute at least the equivalent amount of Child Benefit towards their upkeep.
Those who have fostered a child where the local council is not contributing towards their accommodation or maintenance, or those who have adopted a child, are entitled to claim Child Benefit. You may also qualify if you are caring for a child on behalf of a friend or relative.
There is no restriction on the number of children you can claim Child Benefit for, though only one person may claim where two people are caring for the same child.
Meanwhile, higher earners are being reminded that they may be required to repay a portion of their Child Benefit.
Should you or your partner earn in excess of £60,000, you will need to return 1% of your Child Benefit for every £200 earned above this threshold.
This reimbursement forms part of the High Income Child Benefit Charge, and once your income surpasses £80,000, the full sum of Child Benefit received must be repaid.
The earnings threshold for the High Income Child Benefit Charge was increased from £50,000 to £60,000 in April 2024.
