Child Benefit Tax Calculator UK 2026
Calculate your child benefit entitlement and High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) for 2026 tax year
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What is the High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge?
Child Benefit is a government payment available to anyone responsible for a child in the UK. It is not means-tested, which means you can claim it regardless of how much you earn. However, if you or your partner earns above a certain threshold, HMRC will claw back some or all of it through a separate tax charge called the High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge, or HICBC for short.
The HICBC was introduced in January 2013. For years, the income threshold sat at £50,000, which meant a huge number of families were gradually pulled into paying it back as wages rose. That changed from 6 April 2024, when the government raised the threshold to £60,000 and extended the taper. From that date, the benefit is only fully withdrawn once the higher earner’s adjusted net income reaches £80,000.
In simple terms: claiming Child Benefit does not automatically cost you money. The question is whether your income is high enough to trigger the charge, and if so, how much of it you need to pay back.
The charge works on a sliding scale:
Adjusted Net Income | Charge Rate | What Happens |
Below £60,000 | 0% | No charge – keep full benefit |
£60,001 – £79,999 | 1% per £200 over £60,000 | Partial repayment via Self Assessment or PAYE |
£80,000 or above | 100% | Full benefit must be repaid |
From 6 April 2026, the new Child Benefit rates apply. The weekly payment rises to £27.05 for your eldest or only child, and £17.90 for each additional child. These figures are confirmed by Parliament’s uprating order and represent a 3.8% increase in line with the September 2025 Consumer Prices Index.
Child | Weekly Rate (2025/26) | Weekly Rate (2026/27 from April 2026) |
Eldest or only child | £26.05 | £27.05 |
Each additional child | £17.25 | £17.90 |
Even if you expect to repay the full benefit through the HICBC, it is still worth registering. Claiming Child Benefit protects your National Insurance credits, which count towards your State Pension, and it also triggers the automatic issue of your child’s National Insurance number when they turn 16.
What Makes You Liable?
You become liable for the High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge when Child Benefit is being paid to someone in your household, and either you or your partner has an adjusted net income above £60,000. It does not matter who is actually receiving the benefit payments. The charge falls on whichever partner has the higher income.
Here are the key points that determine your liability:
- It is based on individual income, not household income. Two parents each earning £59,000, a combined £118,000, pay nothing back. A single parent earning £65,000 pays a charge. This is one of the most criticised aspects of the system, and the previous government planned to move to a household income basis by April 2026. However, the current government announced at Autumn Budget 2024 that this reform will not go ahead.
- The children do not need to be yours biologically. If you move in with a partner who is already claiming Child Benefit, you could become liable even though the child is not yours.
- Temporary arrangements count. If you temporarily move in with a new partner and they are claiming Child Benefit, you can be assessed for the charge during that period, even if the relationship does not last.
- HMRC will not always notify you. As the higher earner, it is your responsibility to declare your liability through Self Assessment. If you do not, you may face penalties and backdated charges.
- Adjusted net income is not the same as salary. Your adjusted net income includes all taxable income, salary, bonuses, dividends, rental income, savings interest above your allowance, and self-employment profits – minus certain deductions such as pension contributions, Gift Aid donations, and trading losses.
If you are unsure whether your income takes you above £60,000 on this basis, our Child Benefit Tax Calculator will do the maths for you. Enter your gross income and any pension or Gift Aid contributions to get an accurate adjusted net income figure.
What Can Be Done?
If you or your partner earns above £60,000, you have a few options available to manage or reduce your liability.
1. Claim the benefit but pay the charge
Many families choose to keep receiving payments and pay the HICBC at the end of the year through Self Assessment or, from October 2025, through a new HMRC PAYE service. This approach makes sense if your income fluctuates, since paying back via tax means you are never out of pocket overall and you preserve all the secondary benefits of claiming.
2. Opt out of receiving payments
You can choose to remain registered for Child Benefit but opt out of receiving the actual payments. This means no money comes in, but you also have no HICBC to pay. You still receive National Insurance credits and your child still gets their National Insurance number automatically. This is often the simplest route if your income is consistently above £80,000.
3. Reduce your adjusted net income
This is where forward planning can make a real difference. Because the charge is based on adjusted net income rather than gross salary, increasing your pension contributions or making Gift Aid donations directly reduces the income figure that HMRC uses to calculate the charge.
For example, if you earn £68,000 and you make £10,000 in pension contributions, your adjusted net income drops to £58,000, below the threshold entirely. You would receive the full Child Benefit with no charge to pay.
4. Pay via PAYE instead of Self Assessment
From October 2025, HMRC introduced a digital service allowing employed taxpayers who owe HICBC to pay through their PAYE tax code rather than filing a Self Assessment return. This is only available if you do not already file Self Assessment for another reason.
To use it, you need to call HMRC to be removed from Self Assessment first, and then register via the new online service. Your employer will then collect the charge gradually through your monthly pay.
How Much is the Benefit?
From 6 April 2026, the weekly Child Benefit rates increase by 3.8%, in line with the September 2025 CPI inflation figure. These rates apply across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Eldest or only child: £27.05 per week (up from £26.05)
- Each additional child: £17.90 per week (up from £17.25)
There is no cap on the number of children you can claim for, and the benefit is paid every four weeks directly into your bank account. Under the new rates, this means:
- One child: £108.20 every four weeks (£1,407.60 per year)
- Two children: £179.80 every four weeks (£2,348.80 per year)
- Three children: £251.40 every four weeks (£3,290 per year)
- Four children: £323.00 every four weeks (£4,231.20 per year)
Payments are usually made on a Monday or Tuesday. If a payment date falls on a bank holiday, HMRC moves it to the last working day before. Guardian’s Allowance also rises from £22.10 to £22.95 per week from April 2026 for those eligible.
Remember: if the higher earner’s adjusted net income is between £60,000 and £80,000, some of this benefit will be taxed back. Use our Child Benefit Tax Calculator above to work out exactly how much you keep, and what you owe.
How Do You Claim Child Benefits in the UK?
Child Benefit is not awarded automatically. You need to make a claim through HMRC, and the sooner you do it, the better, because new claims are only backdated by up to three months from the date HMRC receives your application.
Here is how to claim:
- Complete the CH2 form, this is the official Child Benefit claim form. You can fill it in online via your Government Gateway account or download a paper version from GOV.UK and post it to the Child Benefit Office.
- Provide the child’s birth or adoption certificate, you will need to send the original document with a paper claim. For online claims, you upload a scan.
- Submit as soon as possible after the birth or after the child comes to live with you, HMRC can take up to 16 weeks to process a claim, and sometimes longer, so do not wait.
- If you expect to earn above £80,000, you can still claim but opt out of receiving payments at the same time. This protects your National Insurance credits without creating a HICBC liability.
Payments begin from the Monday after HMRC receives your completed claim. If you claimed but your circumstances have changed, for example, your income has dropped below £80,000 since you previously opted out, you can restart payments by completing an online form or contacting the Child Benefit Office. HMRC say it takes up to 21 days once you restart for the first payment to arrive.
Who Can Make the Claim?
Only one person can claim Child Benefit for any given child at a time. Both parents or guardians may be eligible, but HMRC will only pay one claimant per child. Here is who qualifies:
- You must be responsible for the child. This means the child lives with you, or you contribute at least the same amount towards the child’s upkeep as the Child Benefit payment itself.
- The child must be under 16. Alternatively, they can be under 20 if they are in approved education or training. This covers A-levels, Scottish Highers, NVQs up to level 3, and some unpaid apprenticeships, but not university degree courses.
- You must be living in the UK. You cannot claim if you are not habitually resident in the UK. There are limited exceptions for UK nationals who work abroad for HMRC, the British Council, or the armed forces.
- Your immigration status must allow it. Those subject to immigration control are generally not entitled to claim, though there are exceptions. HMRC’s guidance on GOV.UK covers the specific conditions in detail.
There is no restriction on income or employment status when it comes to eligibility. A parent who earns £200,000 can still claim – they will simply repay 100% of it through the HICBC. The benefit of claiming regardless is the National Insurance credit for any partner who is not working or earns below the Lower Earnings Limit (currently £6,500 per year).
If you are unsure whether you qualify, HMRC’s online eligibility checker at GOV.UK is the quickest way to confirm before you apply.
Making a Claim for the First Time?
If you have never claimed Child Benefit before, the process is straightforward. Here is everything you need to know before you start.
What you will need
- Your National Insurance number
- Your partner’s National Insurance number (if you have one)
- The child’s original birth certificate or adoption certificate
- Your bank account details for the payment to be sent to
- Your Government Gateway user ID and password (for online claims)
How to fill in the CH2 form?
The CH2 form asks for basic personal details, your child’s information, and your bank details. It also asks whether you or your partner expects to earn above the HICBC threshold. If you do, you can tick a box to claim but opt out of payments at the same time, you still get all the ancillary benefits without any charge.
After you submit
HMRC will write to confirm they have received your claim. Processing can take up to 16 weeks. Once approved, your first payment will arrive on the Monday after the decision is made, and then every four weeks from that point. If you submitted a paper form and need to chase it up, you can contact the Child Benefit helpline on 0300 200 3100 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm).
Backdating your claim
Claims are automatically backdated by up to three months from the date HMRC receives your form. So if your child was born four months ago and you are only claiming now, you will miss one month of payments. This is why making the claim as early as possible matters.
If you have previously opted out
If your income has since dropped below £80,000, you can opt back in to receiving payments. Complete the online form through your Government Gateway account or call the Child Benefit Office. Payments will restart within 21 days, and you will not need to complete a new CH2 form.
FAQs: Child Benefit Tax Calculator
How much tax do I pay on my Child Benefit?
You do not pay income tax on Child Benefit itself. Instead, if the higher earner in your household has an adjusted net income above £60,000, HMRC collects money back through a separate charge called the High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge. The charge is 1% of your total Child Benefit for every £200 of income over £60,000. If your income reaches £80,000, the full amount is repaid.
Is it worth claiming Child Benefit if I earn over £50,000?
Yes, it is almost always worth claiming, even if you expect to pay some or all of it back. The key reason is National Insurance credits. If your partner is not working or earns below the Lower Earnings Limit, claiming Child Benefit in their name gives them a Class 3 NI credit for each week of entitlement. These credits count towards the State Pension. Losing them by not claiming can cost far more in retirement income than any short-term admin saving. Also, the HICBC threshold now starts at £60,000, not £50,000, so if you earn between £50,000 and £60,000, there is no charge at all.
How much Child Benefit will I get if I earn £70,000?
Your gross entitlement is the same as everyone else’s, £27.05 per week for your eldest child and £17.90 for each additional child from April 2026. However, at £70,000 you will need to repay 50% of that back through the HICBC. Your income is £10,000 over the £60,000 threshold. Divide that by £200, and you get 50. So 50% of what you receive gets charged back. For one child, your annual benefit would be around £1,407.60, and you would pay back approximately £703.80.
How can I avoid paying tax on Child Benefit?
The most effective and legal way to reduce or eliminate the HICBC is to bring your adjusted net income below £60,000. You can do this by increasing your pension contributions, either into a workplace pension or a personal pension. Every pound you contribute reduces your adjusted net income by a pound. Gift Aid donations work the same way. If you earn £65,000 but contribute £6,000 into a pension, your adjusted net income falls to £59,000 and no charge applies. You can also opt out of receiving payments if your income is reliably above £80,000, which removes the charge entirely while still giving you NI credits.
What is adjusted net income and how do I calculate it?
Adjusted net income is the income figure HMRC uses to assess your HICBC liability. It is not simply your salary. It includes all your taxable income – wages, bonuses, dividends, rental profits, savings interest over your Personal Savings Allowance, and self-employment income. From that total, you subtract certain reliefs: pension contributions you made yourself (not employer contributions), Gift Aid donations grossed up, and trading losses. The resulting figure is your adjusted net income. Your P60 or self-assessment calculation will show this if you already file a return.
What is the High Income Child Benefit Charge threshold for 2026?
The threshold for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027) remains at £60,000, unchanged from 2024/25 and 2025/26. The charge applies at 1% per £200 of income between £60,000 and £80,000, at which point the full benefit is repaid. The previous government planned to raise the threshold further and move to a household income basis by April 2026, but the current government has confirmed neither reform will proceed.
Can both parents claim Child Benefit?
No. Only one person can claim Child Benefit for any single child at one time. If both parents are eligible, they need to decide between themselves who will make the claim. Typically, the partner with the lower income should be the named claimant, as this maximises NI credits for a non-working or lower-earning parent. However, it is the higher earner’s adjusted net income that determines the HICBC, regardless of who is claiming.
Do I need to file a Self Assessment return because of Child Benefit?
You did until recently, yes. Previously, anyone liable for the HICBC had to register for Self Assessment and file an annual tax return. From October 2025, HMRC launched a new digital PAYE service that allows employed taxpayers who owe HICBC – and have no other reason to file a return – to pay the charge through their tax code instead. If you use this service, you no longer need to be registered for Self Assessment. However, if you already file a return for other reasons (for example, self-employment or rental income), you must continue to declare the HICBC there.
What happens if I do not declare the High Income Child Benefit Charge?
HMRC can charge penalties for failing to notify them of your liability. In most cases, a lack of awareness is not accepted as a reasonable excuse, though there have been successful appeals in tribunal cases. If you discover you have been liable in previous years and have not filed, you should contact HMRC and register for Self Assessment immediately. The charge can be backdated, and interest will accrue on unpaid amounts. Getting professional help from an accountant at this point is strongly advisable.
Can I claim Child Benefit for a child who does not live with me?
Yes, provided you are contributing at least the value of the Child Benefit towards that child’s upkeep. HMRC does not require the child to live at your address permanently, but they do need to be satisfied that you are financially responsible for the child. You cannot claim if someone else is already receiving Child Benefit for the same child, unless there has been a change in care arrangements.
What if my partner earns above £60,000 but I am the one claiming?
It does not matter who is actually receiving the payments. The charge falls on whoever has the higher adjusted net income in the household. If your partner earns above £60,000, they are responsible for paying the HICBC and for declaring it to HMRC. They will need to either register for Self Assessment or use the new HMRC PAYE service to pay the charge. You can continue to receive the payments.
Does Child Benefit count as income?
No. Child Benefit is not classed as taxable income and it does not need to be declared on a tax return as earnings. The HICBC is a separate tax charge, not a tax on the benefit payments themselves. This distinction matters because it means receiving Child Benefit does not affect your income tax band, your Personal Allowance, or any Universal Credit calculation.
How long does it take for a Child Benefit claim to be processed?
HMRC advise that it can take up to 16 weeks to process a new Child Benefit claim, and sometimes longer during busy periods. Once approved, the first payment arrives on the Monday after the decision. If you are making a claim for a newborn, it is worth submitting the CH2 form as soon as you have the birth certificate, since backdating only covers a maximum of three months.
Can I claim Child Benefit for a child over 16?
Yes, up to the age of 20, as long as the child remains in approved education or training. Approved courses include A-levels, Scottish Highers, International Baccalaureate, NVQs at Level 3 and below, and some unpaid training. University degree programmes do not qualify. You must notify HMRC if your child leaves education or training before they turn 20, as the payments will stop. HMRC will usually write to you near the child’s 16th birthday to ask for updated information.
What is the easiest way to work out how much Child Benefit I am entitled to?
Use our Child Benefit Tax Calculator at the top of this page. Enter your adjusted net income (or an estimate if you are unsure), your partner’s income if applicable, and the number of children you have. The calculator will tell you the full Child Benefit you are entitled to, any HICBC charge that applies at your income level, and the net amount you will actually keep. It is updated for the 2026/27 rates from April 2026 and takes into account the current HMRC thresholds and taper rules.