HMRC is urging nearly a million parents with 16 to 19 year old children in education that they must renew child benefit claims urgently or lose the payment

23 Aug HMRC is urging nearly a million parents with 16 to 19 year old children in education that they must renew child benefit claims urgently or lose the payment

It is essential renew claims as money is not paid automatically. For parents of 16 to 19 year olds in approved education or training who have not yet extended their claim, child benefit payments will stop from 1 September.

HMRC confirmed that 978,000 parents have not renewed their claims and will lose the payments if they fail to take action.

The benefit is paid for children who are studying full time in schools and colleges, including for A levels, Scottish Highers, T levels, NVQs up to level 3 and International Baccalaureate, for example.

It is very easy to renew a claim online on gov.uk or via the HMRC app as long as you have a Government Gateway user ID and password. The deadline is 31 August to ensure no break in payments.

More than 270,000 parents have extended their claim digitally so far, with the changes applied to their record without the need to wait on the phone.

HMRC warned: ‘Parents should keep their claim details up to date, even if they have opted not to receive child benefit payments due to the high income child benefit charge (HICBC).’

The earnings cap for HICBC has been raised to £60,000 from April 2024, so any higher earner needs to reclaim the benefit to ensure they receive payments they are entitled to.

Child benefit is worth up to £1,331 a year for the first or only child, and up to £881 a year for a second child. There is a two-child cap so a third child or more does not receive the benefit in most instances.

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s director general for customer services, said: ‘Child benefit is an important financial support for many households and we don’t want to see any eligible family miss out. You can extend your claim quickly and easily online or via the HMRC app, just search ‘child benefit when your child turns 16’ on gov.uk.’

Victoria Benson, CEO of Gingerbread, the charity for single parent families, said: ‘Child benefit is valuable to families and particularly single parent families.

‘It’s really important, with the 31 August deadline fast approaching, that parents whose children are going into further education and training extend their claim as soon as possible to avoid missing out on this crucial financial help.’