Child Benefit tax charge calculator

How the Child Benefit tax charge works

If you or your partner have adjusted net income over £60,000, you pay back some of your Child Benefit through the High Income Child Benefit Charge. If you both earn over that, whoever has the higher income pays it (GOV.UK: High Income Child Benefit Charge).

You pay back 1% of your Child Benefit for every £200 of income over £60,000. At £80,000 or more, you pay back all of it.

Child Benefit rates

Child Benefit is £27.05 a week for the eldest or only child and £17.90 a week for each other child (GOV.UK: what you'll get).

How we work it out

• We estimate a year of Child Benefit as 52 weeks at the weekly rate. The real charge uses the Child Benefit actually paid to you in the tax year, which depends on payment dates. Some tax years have 53 payment weeks, so the real charge may be slightly higher.
• The percentage is 1% for each whole £200 over the threshold, rounded down to a whole number.
• The year's Child Benefit and the charge are each rounded down to a whole pound, as the law sets out (Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003, section 681C).

A worked example

With two children, a year of Child Benefit is £2,337.40, which is £2,337 once rounded down. If the higher earner's adjusted net income is £68,000, that is £8,000 over the threshold, so the charge is 40% of £2,337: £934. The family keeps £1,403.40.

Choosing not to get payments

You can choose to stop getting Child Benefit payments. You then do not pay the charge, and you still get National Insurance credits, which count towards your State Pension (GOV.UK). If you stop the payments, you are still registered for Child Benefit.

Lowering your adjusted net income

Adjusted net income is your total taxable income minus certain deductions, such as pension contributions and Gift Aid donations. Paying more into a pension can reduce it, and so reduce the charge. GOV.UK explains how to work it out (GOV.UK: adjusted net income).