CCM18020 - Child Benefit and Tax Credits: Definition of Child

Child Benefit before 10 April 2006 and Child Tax Credit before 6 April 2006

Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit are paid for a child or young person who is:

• under 16 years old,
• under 19 years old and in full-time education; a list of qualifying courses is on the Child Benefit Office site within the Knowledge Base , or
• under 18 years old and has left full-time education and the Board has been notified that they have registered for work or training with one of the following within the relevant deadline:

Exclusions

Neither Child Benefit nor Child Tax Credit is payable where

• a child or young person is undertaking training and a training allowance is paid or
• the child or young person is getting Income Support or Income-based Jobseekers Allowance

Differences

The main difference between Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit is the date on which payment stops after the child/young person is over 16 and leaves full time education.

After their 16th birthday:

• for Child Tax Credit they remain a child until 31 August and then become a qualifying young person until the date they leave full time education or their 19th birthday
• for Child Benefit they remain a child until their 19th birthday or if sooner, until the next terminal date after they leave full-time, non-advanced education that is the: