About Child Tax Credit System
child tax credit

About Child Tax Credit

Child tax credit is the other type of tax credit apart from Working Tax credit which is more widely talked about, for the reason that it affects a much larger number of people. When it comes to Child Tax credit there are two things which are essential to be aware of:

- Anyone can apply for and receive Child Tax credit, given the fact that they do have or they have official custody over one or more children.

- There are two types of payments: the first one is after one child and the second one is after two or more children. There is currently no difference in payment even if someone has 4 or more children they would receive the exact same sum which someone would receive after two children. However, bear in mind that there are other maternity benefits which someone can apply for and receive apart from Child Tax.

Who is eligible to receive Child Tax: let’s put down some basic conditions down below:

If applicant has a child who is between 0 to 16 years of age.

If applicant is a young person above the age of 16 and below 20 years old and applies to study at an educational facility which is approved by the Tax Credit office. This way the child gets financial support for studying, even if it’s a school or if it’s a licenced training centre.

If applicant is between 16 and 17 years of age and decides not to enrol in advanced education and who does not have a job. Another condition is for the applicant to be registered at either the Careers Service or the local Connexions Service and also to prove that he/she does not claim any income support and has no official income of any kind.

The elements

Child tax credit has two key elements: the family element and the child element. Let’s see how this looks like as of 2016/17
Family element: this is one of the basic elements of Child Tax credit for those who have one or more children the sum is up to GBP 545
Extra family element: this is an extra which is paid for those who have one or more than one children below the age of 1 years old. This is paid in one single sum as an extra element
Child Element: this is the element which is dedicated to the child of the family. The maximum sum is GBP 2780/child
Disability element: if the child have a certified disability or he/she is blind and if the applying parent also receives Disability Living Allowance the maximum sum is GBP 3140
Severe disability element: if your child has a severe disability and if you receive the Highest Rate Care Component of Disability Living Allowance for your child the maximum amount of this additional element is GBP 1275.

Call the Tax Credit hotline for more information and use the online calculator to learn more on how much credit you are to receive. Bear in mind that your job papers and previous year’s tax papers must also be important in the process.