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 a newborn baby dies
You’re entitled to up to 8 weeks of Child Benefit if you claim within 3 months of the death.
If the child died before the end of the week they were born in, the 8 weeks start from the Monday following the death.
If you’ve already claimed
You need to tell the Child Benefit Office as soon as possible if a child you’re getting Child Benefit for dies.
If you have not claimed yet
If the child died before you claimed Child Benefit, you can still send a claim form (unless the child was stillborn). You cannot claim online.
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.
Child Benefit can be backdated for up to 3 months. Claim as soon as possible to get what you’re entitled to.
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. This applies even if you opted out for any reason, like the High Income Child Benefit Charge.
You will not have to pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge on any Child Benefit received after the child dies.