Child Benefit

Child Benefit in 2026/27 pays £27.05 per week for the eldest or only child and £17.90 per week for each additional child — rates are normally uprated each April. There is no limit on the number of children who can be claimed for. The High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) claws back the benefit via self-assessment: if either parent earns between £60,000 and £80,000 the charge tapers from 0% to 100% of the benefit received; earnings above £80,000 result in a full repayment. Even if you expect to repay it all, registering for Child Benefit protects your National Insurance record (useful for the State Pension) and automatically issues a National Insurance number to your child at 16. Claims can be backdated by up to three months — do not delay registering a new child.

What it means in practice. Child Benefit does two jobs. The obvious one is the weekly payment. The less obvious but often more valuable one is that claiming it for a child under 12 awards National Insurance credits to the person who claims, protecting their State Pension during years out of paid work. That is why the claim should normally be made in the name of the lower-earning parent, and why you should still register even if the payment will be clawed back in full.

A worked example. Rob earns £72,000 and his partner Yasmin is at home with their two children. If they claim, Child Benefit of £27.05 plus £17.90 a week is paid to Yasmin, and Rob pays part of it back through the High Income Child Benefit Charge on his self-assessment return, because his income sits between the £60,000 and £80,000 thresholds. If instead they opt out of payment entirely, they avoid the charge and the paperwork — but Yasmin must still register the claim and elect not to be paid, or she loses a National Insurance credit for every year she is out of work.

Common pitfalls. The single most expensive mistake is not claiming at all because of the tax charge, which silently costs qualifying years towards the State Pension. The second is failing to notify HMRC when a 16-year-old stays in approved education, which stops payments that should have continued. The third is forgetting that the charge is based on the higher earner's individual adjusted net income, not on household income, so two parents each earning £55,000 pay nothing while a single parent on £75,000 pays a substantial charge.

How it relates to other terms. Child Benefit was never affected by the two-child limit, and since April 2026 the Universal Credit child element is not either — the limit has been abolished. It does count towards the Benefit Cap. The credits it generates feed directly into your National Insurance record and therefore your State Pension.

What to do next. Register the claim within three months of a birth using our Child Benefit guide, opting out of payment if the charge would apply. Read the two-child limit guide if you have three or more children, since the limit was abolished in April 2026 and your Universal Credit should now include an element for every child, and maternity benefits for what else you can claim around a birth.