How much is Child Benefit? £27.05 a week for the eldest child
Partners who live together cannot both claim the higher rate, but each parent can get it for a child after a split, GOV.UK says.
Child Benefit is £27.05 a week for the eldest or only child and £17.90 a week for each additional child, according to GOV.UK’s Child Benefit page.
GOV.UK’s payment dates page says the payment is usually made every four weeks, and that a single parent, or someone who or whose partner gets certain benefits such as Income Support, can be paid weekly instead. On the four-weekly cycle, one child comes to £108.20 in each payment, by our sum.
| children | per week | per 4-week payment | per year of 52 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £27.05 | £108.20 | £1,406.60 |
| 2 | £44.95 | £179.80 | £2,337.40 |
| 3 | £62.85 | £251.40 | £3,268.20 |
| 4 | £80.75 | £323.00 | £4,199.00 |
The totals are our own sums from the two GOV.UK rates, for a family on the four-weekly cycle and before any High Income Child Benefit Charge.
What changes the amount
When a family splits up, GOV.UK says, the eldest child is paid at £27.05 a week. In its example, a parent has two children, one living with them and the other with an ex-partner, and the two parents each get £27.05 a week. If both claim for the same child, only one of them gets Child Benefit for that child.
If someone moves in with a partner who also claims Child Benefit, the eldest child in the household is paid at £27.05 and any younger children at £17.90. Partners who live together can claim for different children but cannot both claim the higher rate, and “may have to pay back some of the money” if they do.
Child Benefit payments also count towards the benefit cap, the page adds. A family affected by the cap still gets the full amount, but its other benefits may be reduced.
Our guide to Child Benefit payment dates explains what happens when a payday falls on a bank holiday.
How the High Income Child Benefit Charge works
A claimant or their partner may have to pay the charge, which means paying back some or all of the Child Benefit, according to GOV.UK’s guidance on the High Income Child Benefit Charge. An individual income is over the threshold if it is over £60,000 for tax years starting from 2024 to 2025, and the test uses adjusted net income.
Adjusted net income is total taxable income, including savings interest and dividends, worked out before Personal Allowances and less certain tax reliefs, such as pension contributions and Gift Aid. If both partners are over the threshold, whoever has the higher adjusted net income is responsible for paying the charge.
The charge takes back 1% of the Child Benefit for every £200 of income over the threshold. Above £80,000, all of it is paid back. By that formula, an income of £70,000 is £10,000 over the threshold. The charge would then take back 50% of the benefit. For a two-child family receiving £2,337.40 over a full year at these rates, that is £1,168.70, our own sum.
The charge can be paid through PAYE or through Self Assessment, the guidance says. It also points to the Child Benefit tax calculator for an estimate.
Questions and answers
Can I stop the payments instead of paying the charge?
Yes. GOV.UK says someone whose income is over the threshold can opt out of receiving payments, stay registered for Child Benefit and still get National Insurance credits that count towards the State Pension.
Can a parent under 16 claim?
GOV.UK says a parent under 16 can claim for their own child, or someone responsible for them can claim on their behalf, and that they will usually get more if they claim for themselves.
What if the amount I am paid is wrong?
GOV.UK says to contact the Child Benefit Office if you are paid too much or too little.
