Martin Lewis urges people earning over £60,000 to claim HMRC benefit | Personal Finance | Finance
Money expert Martin Lewis has urged people who earn as much as £60,000 to £80,000 to claim a benefit from HMRC. Though most people think of benefits as being for low earners, such as Universal Credit top-ups to income, or Pension Credit, there are actually some benefits which are on offer to people earning well above the national average wage.
One such benefit is Child Benefit, and with the recent changes, Martin Lewis is now urging people who earn over the thresholds to claim it anyway. Martin Lewis was asked a question by his co-host Jeanette Kwayke on his ITV The Martin Lewis Money Show Live back in November 2024, which asked: “As a working couple with three young children, should we still claim Child Benefit if one of us earns over £60,000?”
Martin then replied: “Yes, absolutely, you should. Last year the thresholds where you start to lose Child Benefit were increased, so now you start to have your Child Benefit decreased at £60,000, the highest earner having £60,000, and you lose it totally with the highest earner earning £80,000.
“As long as the highest earner is under £80,000, you will be net better off by claiming Child Benefit.”
The reason for this is, you don’t lose your entire Child Benefit as soon as you hit the threshold. Instead, it tapers off gradually until you hit £80,000, at which point you lose it entirely.
So if you’re earning, for example, £70,000, you’ll still get half of the maximum Child Benefit payment and end up better off than you would be if you didn’t claim it at all.
Martin added: “Worth saying even if you’re above £80,000, if one of you isn’t working, they should be claiming Child Benefit at zero rate, ie claiming it but saying don’t give me any, because that’s what triggers your National Insurance credits, which goes towards your state pension.”
Unfortunately, it’s not all good news, as Martin Lewis confirmed that one element he’s been campaigning on – to change the system for Child Benefit to be based on household income instead of based on the highest earner’s sole income.
In fact, in 2024 and 2025’s Budgets, no change was announced to the way the system currently works. It means that some unfairness baked into Child Benefit has still not been addressed.
For example, two people living together earning £59,000 each can claim the full amount of Child Benefit between them, but another couple with one person earning £80,000 and another earning nothing would not be able to get anything, despite their total household income being lower.
