HMRC says boost State Pension payments with £26 a week claim | Personal Finance | Finance
Claiming Child Benefit can give you National Insurance credits towards your State Pension (Image: Getty)
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is urging people to make a claim for a benefit that could boost their future State Pension payments.
Child Benefit can be claimed by parents or carers who are responsible for raising a child under 16, or under 20 if the child is in approved education or training. The benefit is paid every four weeks and gives parents £26.05 a week for their first child, and £17.25 for any additional children. As such, it means parents with one child can get 1,354.60 per year, while those with two children can get £2,251.60, and parents with three children can get £3,148.60.
But there’s no limit – other than the Benefit Cap – which means if you had four children, or five, and so on, you could get even more than £3,148, with £897 for each additional child. The benefit is also due to rise from April 6 by 3.8% to £27.05 per week for the eldest child and £17.90 for additional children, giving claimants a bit of extra cash.
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But Child Benefit doesn’t just help with the costs of childcare – it can also boost your State Pension payments too, as you’ll get National Insurance credits automatically just by claiming it and if your child is under 12.
These credits count towards your State Pension and can help to plug any gaps in your National Insurance record which can affect how much you’ll get once you state claiming your pension in the future.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) at the weekend, HMRC urged parents and carers to check their eligibility and make a claim, stating: “Got a child under 16 (or under 20 in approved education/training)? Join over one million parents and carers who have claimed Child Benefit online!
“Up to £26.05 a week for your first child, £17.25 for any additional children, National Insurance credits towards your State Pension. Claim on the HMRC app or online. Find out more here.”
You can end up with gaps in your National Insurance record if you’re not working or you don’t earn enough to pay National Insurance contributions, and this can impact your State Pension.
To get any new State Pension at all, you’ll need a minimum of 10 qualifying years on your National Insurance record and generally, you’ll need at least 35 qualifying years to get the full rate, which is currently £230.25 per week.
The government explains: “If your National Insurance record started before April 2016 you may have been contracted out. While you were contracted out, you or your employer paid more into your workplace or private pension and less into your State Pension. If you were contracted out, you will usually need more than 35 qualifying years to get the full rate of new State Pension.
“If your National Insurance record started after April 2016 you will need 35 qualifying years to get the full rate of new State Pension.”
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You can claim Child Benefit 48 hours after you’ve registered the birth of your child, or once a child comes to live with you, and it can be backdated for up to three months from the date you make the claim.
Only one person can get Child Benefit for a child, so it’s up to parents and carers to decide who is the best person to claim it. Whoever makes the claim will get the National Insurance credits towards their State Pension.
