UK Government Benefits & Tax Credits

Child Benefit is a regular four weekly tax free payment made by the government to anyone bringing up children. It is paid for each child that qualifies and is not affected by your income, National Insurance contributions or savings.

Child Benefit is designed to help parents and guardians with the cost of caring for their children.

How much money do you receive from Child Benefit

• You receive £17.00 a week for the eldest child; and
• £11.40 a week for each additional child

Who can receive Child Benefit

You can receive Child Benefit if you have been living in the UK for at least six months and are bringing up a child who is either:

• Under 16 years old; or
• Under 19 years old and studying in full-time, non-higher education; or
• 16 or 17 years old and has recently left school and registered for work or training with the Careers or Connexions Service or a similar organisation.

How is Child Benefit paid

Child Benefit can be paid into any bank, building society, Post Office account or National Savings account that accepts Direct Payment.

Alternatively, if you are registered as being blind or if you need your carer to collect the money on your behalf, you will be sent a cheque which can be cashed at the Post Office.

Child Benefit is paid every four weeks in arrears. However it can be paid weekly if:

• You are a single parent; or
• You or your partner are receiving Income Support or Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance

How to claim Child Benefit

You should claim Child Benefit as soon as:

• Your child is born; or
• A child comes to live with you; or
• You adopt a child; or
• You start to contribute to the cost of looking after a child

You have to complete a claim form and submit the child's birth or adoption certificate in order to receive Child Benefit.

If your child has just been born, you will have received a claim form in the 'Bounty Pack' given to you by the hospital. You can also collect a claim form from a social security or post office.

Alternatively, you can complete a form online (or print one out to fill in later) at the HM Revenue & Customs website. Click below to:

• Print out a Child Benefit claim form
• Complete a Child Benefit claim form online

Further Information about Child Benefit

If you would like further information about Child Benefit please:

• Call the Child Benefit Office on 0845 302 1444 (8.00 am to 8.00 pm seven days a week); or
• Email the Child Benefit Office

Child Tax Credit is a means-tested allowance for parents and guardians.

The majority of families with children are entitled to receive Child Tax Credit.

You are allowed to claim Child Tax Credit if you have children and an annual income of less than £58,000 (but up to £66,000 if you have a child under one year old).

How much money do you receive from Child Tax Credit

The amount you receive depends on various things, including your annual income.

The payment is made up of two elements:

• A family element which paid to any family with at least one child. It is worth an annual amount of up to £545.
• A child element which is paid for each child in the family. It is worth an annual amount of up to £1,690.

You may be entitled to receive more if you care for a child which is under one year old, or a disabled child.

How to claim Child Tax Credit

You can receive an application form by calling the Tax Credits helpline on 0845 300 3900.

If you are earning a low income then you may be able to get Working Tax Credit.

Working Tax Credit aims to help people on low incomes. Additional assistance is available for people working thirty hours or more each week, disabled people, and people over fifty years of age who have recently returned to work after a period on benefit.

The amount that you receive varies by circumstance. The table below is an indication of what you might expect to receive in different situations:

Working Tax Credit Elements	Maximum amount due for the 2005-2006 tax year
Basic element paid to everyone who is entitled to receive Working Tax Credit	£1,620
Second adult element	£1,595
Lone parent element	£1,595
An element payable if you work (jointly) 30 hours or more per week	£660
Disability element	£2,165
Severe disability element	£920
An element payable if you're over 50	£1,110 (if you're working between 16 and 29 hours per week) £1,660 (if you're working over 30 hours per week)
A childcare element, where you can get back up to 70 per cent of your costs for qualifying childcare	£175 maximum eligible cost per week if you're paying for one child £300 maximum eligible cost per week if you're paying for two or more children

Source: www.direct.gov.uk

For more information please call the following helpline number: 0845 300 3900

Open from 8am - 8pm seven days a week

If you are under 65 years old and have long term health problems that affect your everyday activities, you may be able to claim a Disability Living Allowance.

It is paid according to two types of needs; care and mobility and there are three different levels of rates (lower, middle and higher).

The rates for Disability Living Allowance between April 2005 and 2006 are as follows:

• Care Component
  • Low rate - £16.05 per week
  • Middle rate £40.55 per week
  • High rate £60.60 per week
• Mobility Component
  • Low rate - £16.05 per week
  • High rate - £42.30 per week

You cannot receive Disability Living Allowance until you have needed help for three months. Furthermore, in order to receive it, you must anticipate needing help for a further six months at least.

If you are not working or are working less than 16 hours a week then you may be entitled to claim a Job Seeker's Allowance.

Job Seeker's Allowance is a type of unemployment benefit that the government pays to people who are unemployed and looking for work. It is designed to cover living expenses during periods when the claimant is out of work.

There are two types of Job Seeker's Allowance:

• Contribution based Job Seeker's Allowance; and
• Income based Jobseeker's Allowance

If you have paid National Insurance contributions you may be eligible for Contribution based Job Seeker's Allowance at a fixed rate based on your age for up to twenty six weeks.

You may be eligible for Income base Job Seeker's Allowance if you have not paid enough National Insurance contributions (or you've only paid contributions for self-employment) and you are receiving a low income.

Contribution Based Job Seeker's Allowance
Aged 16 - 17		£33.85
Aged 18 - 24		£44.50
Aged 25 or over		£56.20
Income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
Single people	aged 16 to 17	£33.85
	aged 18 to 24	£44.50
	aged 25 or over	£56.20
Couple	both aged 16 - 17	£33.85
	both aged 16 -17, one disabled	£44.50
	both aged 16 - 17, with responsibility for a child	£67.15
	one aged 16 -17, one 18 to 24	£44.50
	one aged 16 -17, one over 25	£56.20
	both  aged 18 or over	£88.15
Lone parents	aged 16 to 17	£33.85
	or depending on their circumstances	£44.50
	aged 18 or over	£56.20
Dependent children	from birth to the day before the 19th birthday	£43.88

Source: www.direct.gov.uk

For more details please click here

An employer is obliged to pay Statutory Sick Pay to an employee who has been earning enough to be relevant for National Insurance purposes, for the first 28 weeks of absence if the employee has been incapacitated for four or more working days.

There is no set time period for which a person has to be have been employed before they are entitled to Statutory Sick Pay.

Statutory Sick Pay can be paid without the employee having to produce medical evidence to corroborate his/her illness, unless the employer has reason to doubt the sickness.

Statutory Sick Pay is paid at a weekly rate of £66.15 for a maximum of twenty eight weeks in a year. If a full weeks pay is not applicable then Statutory Sick Pay is paid at a set daily rate.