Child Benefit

Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

Who does it help?

picture of a family Child Benefit is money for people bringing up children.

You can get it if your child is:

under 16
under 20 and doing an education or training course (only certain ones count)
under 20 and has been accepted on an education or training course (only certain ones count).
You do not have to have paid any national insurance contributions to get Child Benefit.

Is it means-tested?

You can get Child Benefit even if you have other money coming in or if you have savings.

However, it can affect the amount of other benefits you may be getting if they are means-tested. These benefits include:

Child Benefit is not counted as income when they work out Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit.

What help does the benefit provide?

Child Benefit is money from the Government that you can spend as you want.

If both parents live together, Child Benefit usually paid to the mother. If both parents do not live together, it is usually paid to the parent with whom the child lives. It is usually paid into your bank or building society. You can be paid at a post office in some cases.

Child Benefit is usually paid every four weeks but it can be paid weekly if you are getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or if you are a single parent.

How much does it pay?

Child Benefit is paid at a higher rate for your oldest child. This is £20.30 a week. If you have other children, you get £13.40 a week for each of them.

Is this a taxable benefit?

Child Benefit is not a taxable benefit.

How to claim

You should claim Child Benefit as soon as your child is born or if a child comes to live with you.
Claim Child Benefit by filling in form CH2 which you can get from the Child Benefit Office, HM Revenue and Customs enquiry centres, your Jobcentre Plus office or, in Northern Ireland, your local Jobs and Benefits office or Social Security office. Or you could fill in a Child Benefit claim form on screen and print it out – you will still need to send it to the Child Benefit Office. Or you could print out a blank Child Benefit claim form and fill it in by hand. Go to the HM Revenue and Customs website (link opens in a new window) for links to onscreen claim forms.

You cannot claim by phone or online.

You can backdate a claim for Child Benefit for three months. You do not need to say why you did not claim earlier.

Documents you need

You must give your evidence of who you are, for example, a driving licence or birth certificate. You must also give evidence of your child, for example, a birth or adoption certificate. You should also give your national insurance number. But if you do not have a national insurance number, send in the claim form anyway to save delays.

Further help

The Turn2us Benefit Checker can help you find out if you qualify for Child Benefit.

If you have problems with Child Benefit, you can contact the Child Benefit Helpline on: 0845 302 1444 in England,Wales and Scotland and 0845 603 2000 in Northern Ireland.

The Citizens Advice website (link opens in a new window) can give you more information about Child Benefit.

Directgov, the government website, (link opens in a new window) has more information about Child Benefit.

Find an adviser tool.

Frequently asked questions relating to Child Benefit

Useful Links

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