High Income: how to stop or restart your Child Benefit payments

If you are entitled to receive Child Benefit and either you, or your partner, are liable for the High Income Child Benefit charge, you can choose to stop receiving your Child Benefit payments. Find out who should do this, when and how.

On this page:

Before you decide to stop your payments

Before you stop your payments it's worth knowing the following:

  • If your, or your partner's, individual income is between £50,000 and £60,000 you might not want to stop Child Benefit payments. This is because the tax charge will always be less than the amount of Child Benefit.
  • If your, or your partner's, individual income is more than £60,000, the tax charge will always be the same as the amount of Child Benefit, so you may want to stop the payments. But there are some income adjustments that may apply, such as pension contributions, which could bring your income level down to below £60,000. This could reduce your tax charge.

You can check the likely tax charge by using an online calculator if you haven't already done so. Only use this calculator if your income is more than £50,000 and your income is higher than your partner's.

Even if you decide to stop your Child Benefit payments, you can always start them again later on.

Estimate your High Income Child Benefit charge on GOV.UK (Opens new window)

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Who can stop the payments

Only you - as the person entitled to receive Child Benefit - can stop the payments. You don't have to stop them if you don't want to.

You won't be able to stop your payments if you're paying back an overpayment of Child Benefit (or certain benefits paid by another country) from your current Child Benefit payments.

Authorised agents will soon be able to stop the payments on behalf of their clients.

Appointees

You can stop the payments if you are an 'appointee'. An appointee is someone who acts on behalf of a person who can't manage their affairs, for example because of a disability.

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When you can stop the payments

You can ask to stop your payments at any time. However because the tax charge only came into effect on 7 January 2013 it's worth knowing the following:

  • if you stopped your payments before 7 January 2013 whoever is liable to the tax charge won't have to declare the amount of Child Benefit
  • if you have decided to stop your payments after 7 January 2013 whoever is liable to the tax charge will have to declare the amount relating to the period from 7 January until the date the payments stop on their 2012-13 tax return
  • if you stopped your payments by 28 March whoever is liable to the tax charge will only need to complete a tax return for the 2012-13 tax year (unless they need to do so for other reasons)

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How to stop your payments

You can stop your Child Benefit payments by:

  • using an online form
  • calling the Child Benefit Helpline or writing to the Child Benefit Office

Apply online to stop your Child Benefit payments

Contact details for Child Benefit

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If you don't want to stop your payments

If you don't want to stop your payments, then whoever is liable to the tax charge will have to:

  • declare the Child Benefit payments to HMRC by registering for Self Assessment and filling in a tax return
  • pay a tax charge based on the amount of your Child Benefit entitlement

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Restarting your Child Benefit payments

Only the person who is entitled to Child Benefit can ask for the payments to be started again - although authorised agents will soon be able to request that payments are restarted for their clients.

You can restart your Child Benefit payments by:

  • using an online form
  • calling the Child Benefit Helpline or writing to the Child Benefit Office

Depending on who has the higher income, one of you may still be liable to a tax charge from the point you restart your Child Benefit payments.

Apply online to restart your Child Benefit payments

Contact details for Child Benefit

When you can restart your payments

You can decide to start receiving Child Benefit payments again at any time.

For income over £60,000 your payments can only restart from the Monday after the Child Benefit Office gets your request.

Restarting when income drops below £60,000

If you or your partner's income drops to below £60,000 for a full tax year, you can apply to restart your Child Benefit payments for up to two years after the end of that tax year.

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Claiming Child Benefit

If you decide to stop your Child Benefit payments it won't affect your entitlement to Child Benefit.

As long as you, or your partner, are entitled to receive it you should still complete a Child Benefit claim form for any new children. This is because entitlement to Child Benefit:

  • can help you qualify for National Insurance credits that can protect your entitlement to State Pension
  • can help protect your entitlement to other benefits such as Guardian's Allowance
  • ensures your child is automatically issued with a National Insurance number before their 16th birthday

You must report any changes in circumstances that could affect your Child Benefit entitlement, for example if your child no longer lives with you or you move to live abroad. You must do this even if you have decided to stop receiving the payments.

How changes can affect your Child Benefit payments

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More useful links

How claiming Child Benefit can protect your State Pension

Declaring Child Benefit for the High Income charge - the basics

Getting Child Benefit on behalf of someone else

Introduction to Self Assessment

Registering for Self Assessment and getting a tax return

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