Personal tax credits statistics
This section contains summary statistics about individuals and households claiming Working Tax Credits and/or Child Tax Credits.
The publications include numbers benefiting from individual elements such as childcare and disability, average entitlements, and income band breakdowns. There are also publications on tax credits take-up rates, rates of error and fraud, and children in low income families.
About personal tax credits
Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Working Tax Credit (WTC) replaced Working Families’ Tax Credit, Disabled Person’s Tax Credit and Children’s Tax Credit in April 2003.
Tax credits are based on household circumstances and can be claimed jointly by members of a couple, or by singles. Entitlement is based on factors such as age, income, hours worked, number and age of children, childcare costs and disabilities.
Find out more about the eligibility for Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit.
Provisional awards versus finalised awards
It is important to note that finalised awards statistics are not a revision of the provisional awards statistics.
Please see either publication for more details.
Child and Working Tax Credits: finalised awards publications
The finalised awards are based on a full retrospective view of each tax credits claim in a given financial year and provide statistics on the average caseload position over the full year. The statistics are therefore not available until after the finalisation process and are published around 12 months after the end of the entitlement year in question. These statistics:
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are more useful to those looking for the final end-of-year position
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provide details of total and average entitlements
Previous finalised awards publications are available.
Please note that the ‘Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: Finalised Annual Awards – 2020 to 2021’ encompasses the main publication and geographical component seen in ‘Personal tax credits: finalised award statistics – geographical statistics 2018 to 2019’.
Child and Working Tax Credits: finalised awards publications, supplement on payments
Previous supplement on payments finalised awards publications are available.
Provisional awards publications
The provisional awards provide estimates of the size and composition of the tax credits population at a snapshot date in early April and December each year.
These statistics give the most up-to-date picture but may not align exactly with the finalised data.
Previous provisional publications are also available.
Geographical awards publications
Previous geographical statistics and small area data publications are available.
Other official statistics
Previous error and fraud publications are also available.
Previous publications about universal credit and child tax credit statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children are also available.
Older and related statistics
Feedback and bespoke analysis
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is committed to improving the official statistics they publish. HMRC would welcome any views you have by email to benefitsandcredits.analysis@hmrc.gov.uk .
We also offer bespoke analysis of tax credits data, although there may be a charge depending on the level of complexity and the resources required to produce.
If you would like to discuss your requirements, to comment on the current publications, or for further information about the tax credits statistics please contact us.
You can read more about our work, policies and procedures at the Statistics at HMRC page linked below.
Last updated 26 July 2023 + show all updates
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Added the 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: Finalised Annual Awards – 2021 to 2022' publication to the 'Child and Working Tax Credits: finalised awards publications' section and the 'Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children, April 2023' to the 'Other official statistics' section.
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Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: Provisional Awards April 2023' publication to the 'Provisional awards publications' section.
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits error and fraud statistics 2021 to 2022 to Other Official Statistics section.
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Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: Provisional Awards December 2022' publication to the 'National Statistics' section.
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Page updated to include information about current HMRC public consultation on our statistical publications.
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Added the 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: finalised annual awards, supplement on payments - 2020 to 2021' publication to the 'National Statistics' section
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Added the 'Personal tax credits finalised award statistics - Small area data (LSOA and Data Zone) 2020 to 2021'
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Added the 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: finalised annual awards - 2020 to 2021' publication to the 'National Statistics' section.
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Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: Provisional awards - April 2022' to the 'National Statistics' section. Added 'Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children, April 2021' and 'Universal Credit and Child Tax claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children, April 2022' to the 'Other Official Statistics' section.
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits error and fraud statistics 2020 to 2021 to the Other Official Statistics group.
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Added 'Personal tax credits provisional statistics for December 2021' to 'National Statistics' section
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Added: 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: finalised annual awards, supplement on payments - 2019 to 2020' and 'Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: finalised annual awards, supplement on payments - 2018 to 2019'.
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Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics: Finalised Annual Awards - 2019 to 2020' to the 'National Statistics' section. Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits error and fraud statistics 2019 to 2020' to the 'Other Official Statistics' section.
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Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics: Provisional Awards- April 2021' to 'National Statistics' section.
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Removed documents published before 2020.
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits error and fraud statistics 2018 to 2019, final estimate to Other Official Statistics.
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Added 'Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics: Provisional Awards- December 2020'.
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits error and fraud statistics 2018 to 2019, first release
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This collection has been updated to include the personal tax credits: finalised awards for 2018 to 2019 tax year.
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This collection has been updated to include the Child Tax Credit and Universal Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children for April 2020.
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits error and fraud statistics 2017 to 2018, final estimate to Other Official Statistics.
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Collection has been updated to include the Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Working Tax Credit (WTC) take-up rates 2017 to 2018 publication.
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An update for the Child and Working Tax Credits (CWTC) provisional statistics, April 2019, CWTC finalised awards/payments, 2017-2018 & Child Tax Credit and Universal Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children, April 2019.
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Added the Official Statistics publication "Child and Working Tax Credits error and Fraud Statistics 2017 to 2018, First Release."
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The background information on personal tax credits has been updated. Older publications have been archived.
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Added the Official Statistics publication "Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Working Tax Credit (WTC) take-up rates 2016 to 2017".
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The document 'Personal tax credits: Children in low-income families local measure: 2016 snapshot as at 31 August 2016' has been added to the "Official statistics: Other" collection.
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The document Personal tax credits: finalised award statistics - small area data (LSOA and Data Zone) 2016 to 2017' has been added to the "Official statistics: National" collection.
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The document 'Child Tax Credit and Universal Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children, April 2018' has been added to the Official Statistics collection.
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An update of the Children in low-incomes families series (2015)
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Update to the Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit Take-up rates publication
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Addition to the collection: Personal tax credits: finalised award statistics - small area data (LSOA and Data Zone) 2015 to 2016
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Added Personal tax credits: Finalised award statistics - geographical statistics 2015 to 2016
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits annual error and fraud statistics 2015 to 2016, Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: finalised annual awards - 2015 to 2016, and Child and Working Tax Credits statistics: finalised annual awards, supplement on payments - 2015 to 2016
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Added Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit take-up rates 2014 to 2015
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New Tax Credits statistics for 2014 to 2015 added
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Added Child Benefit, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit take-up rates 2013 to 2014
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latest publication added
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2013-14 Child and Working Tax Credits Error and Fraud statistics added to collection
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Added Child and Working Tax Credits statistics for 2013 to 2014.
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Take-up statistics for 2012/13 have been added and a number of previous publications have been amended.
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This pasge has been updated with new Children in low-income families local measure statistics.
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LSOA and Data Zone finalised statistics have been added for 2012/13.
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Finalised Tax Credits National Statistics have been added for the tax year 2012 to 2013.
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A link to older versions Personal Tax Credits statistics and to Child Poverty statistics specifically have been added.
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Added more statistics.
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Added the document Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics: Provisional Awards - December 2013 to the collection. Added the document Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics: Provisional Awards Geographical Analyses - December 2013 to the collection.
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First published.