Who pays the tax charge If your partner’s income is also over £50,000 but yours is higher, you’re responsible for paying the tax charge. ‘Partner’ means someone you’re not permanently separated from who you’re married to, in a civil partnership with or living with as if you were. Register for Self Assessment You need to fill in a Self Assessment tax return each tax year and pay what you owe. If you do not usually send a tax return, you need to register by 5 October following the tax year you need to pay the tax charge. You’ll get a letter telling you what to do next after you’ve registered. Register now If you cannot get information from your partner or ex-partner You can write to HM Revenue and Customs ( HMRC ) to ask whether your partner or ex-partner gets Child Benefit or has a higher adjusted net income than you. HMRC will reply ‘yes’ or ‘no’ - they will not give you any financial information. You can only ask for this information if you and your partner either live together, or separated within the tax year you want information for. Write to HMRC You need to tell HMRC the tax year you’re asking about, as well as your: name, address, date of birth and National Insurance number Unique Taxpayer Reference, if you have one adjusted net income partner or ex-partner’s name If you can, include your partner or ex-partner’s: address date of birth National Insurance number, if you know it Unique Taxpayer Reference, if they have one Send your letter to: Pay As You Earn and Self Assessment HM Revenue and Customs BX9 1AS

Stop your Child Benefit

To stop your Child Benefit you can either: fill in an online form contact the Child Benefit Office by phone or post You need a Government Gateway user ID and password to fill in the online form. If you do not have a user ID, you can create one when you fill in the form. You cannot use the online form if you’re an appointee or authorised agent . You cannot stop your Child Benefit if you’re using it to pay back an overpayment (or to pay back certain other benefits from another country). Responsibilities after your Child Benefit stops You must pay any tax charge owed for each tax year up to the date your Child Benefit stops. Use the Child Benefit tax calculator to get an estimate of how much you may owe each tax year. Even after your payments stop, you must report any changes in your family life that affect your entitlement to Child Benefit.

Restart your Child Benefit

You can restart your Child Benefit if: you’ve previously stopped it because of the tax charge you still qualify for Child Benefit To restart your Child Benefit, either: fill in an online form contact the Child Benefit Office You need a Government Gateway user ID and password to fill in the online form. If you do not have a user ID, you can create one when you fill in the form. You cannot use the online form if you’re an appointee or authorised agent . Payments usually start again the Monday after your request is received. The Child Benefit Office will write telling you how much backdated Child Benefit you’ll get (if any). Responsibilities after your Child Benefit restarts You (or your partner) will have to pay any tax charge on the benefit received from the restart date if your income is over £50,000. Use the Child Benefit tax calculator to get an estimate of your income and tax deductions to see if you may be affected by the tax charge. You must report any changes to your family life that affect your Child Benefit.

If your circumstances change

Your income changes You will not have to pay the tax charge if your income for the whole of a tax year is less than £50,000. You can choose to stop or restart your Child Benefit at any time. Use the Child Benefit tax calculator to get an estimate of your income changes to see if they may affect the tax charge. You have a new child Claiming Child Benefit helps you qualify for: National Insurance credits, which protect your right to the State Pension other benefits like Guardian’s Allowance Child Benefit proves you (or your partner) support another child. You may pay less child maintenance for children not living with you. You can make a new claim or just protect your entitlement to the above by: sending a Child Benefit claim form ticking the option to ‘not have the benefit paid’ A partner moves in or out Your situation may change if your income is more than £50,000 and you move in or split up with someone who’s getting Child Benefit. You’ll have to pay the tax charge if your income is more than £50,000 and higher than your new partner’s income. Your partner pays it if their income is higher. The tax charge applies from the date you move in together to either the date you permanently separate or the Child Benefit stops - for example because the child is too old to qualify for it. Short periods apart do not count as separation, for example a hospital stay or working away from home.

High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge

Overview

You may have to pay a tax charge, known as the ‘High Income Child Benefit Charge’, if you have an individual income over £50,000 and either:

you or your partner get Child Benefit
someone else gets Child Benefit for a child living with you and they contribute at least an equal amount towards the child’s upkeep

It does not matter if the child living with you is not your own child.

This guide is also available in Welsh (Cymraeg).

If you’re affected by the tax charge

You can choose not to get Child Benefit payments, but you should still fill in the Child Benefit claim form. This will help you get National Insurance credits which count towards your State Pension.

Claiming Child Benefit also means your child will get their National Insurance number automatically shortly before they’re 16. They will not have to apply for one themselves.

Already getting Child Benefit

You can either:

stop getting Child Benefit - sometimes known as ‘opting out’
carry on getting Child Benefit and pay any tax charge at the end of each tax year

What counts as income

To work out if your income is over the threshold, you’ll need to work out your ‘adjusted net income’.

Your adjusted net income is your total taxable income before any personal allowances and less things like Gift Aid.

Use the Child Benefit tax calculator to get an estimate of your adjusted net income.

Print entire guide

High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge

Overview

If you’re affected by the tax charge

Already getting Child Benefit

What counts as income

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High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge

Overview

If you’re affected by the tax charge

Already getting Child Benefit

What counts as income

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Help us improve GOV.UK

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