Child Benefit if a child or parent dies
If a child dies
You’ll usually get Child Benefit for 8 weeks after the child dies. If they would have had their 20th birthday before the 8 weeks are up, Child Benefit will stop on the following Monday.
This guide is also available in Welsh (Cymraeg).
If you’ve already claimed
You’ll need to tell the Child Benefit Office as soon as possible if a child you’re getting Child Benefit for dies. You can do this by phone or by post.
You must include the date of death.
If you have not claimed yet
If the child died before you sent a claim form, you can still send one (unless the child was stillborn).
How to claim
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Make a claim for Child Benefit by post.
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Include a note with the date of the child’s death.
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Put your contact details and National Insurance number on the note.
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Send the child’s birth registration number (shown on the child’s birth certificate) or adoption certificate with your claim form (you do not have to send their death certificate).
If you do not have the child’s birth or adoption certificate, you can order a new one and send in the birth registration number or adoption certificate later.
If your child died before the end of the week they were born in, the 8 weeks will start from the Monday following the death.
Child Benefit can only be backdated for up to 3 months. The longer you leave your claim, the less you’ll get.
If you opted out of receiving Child Benefit
You still need to tell the Child Benefit Office as soon as possible if a child eligible for Child Benefit dies. You can do this by phone or by post.
You must include the date of death.
You will not have to pay the High Income Child Benefit tax charge on any Child Benefit received after the child dies.