High Income Child Benefit Charge: thresholds and when it applies

If you or your partner earns more than £60,000 a year, some or all of your Child Benefit is clawed back through the tax system. This is the High Income Child Benefit Charge, and it is worked out on each person's income separately, not on household income. The charge is 1% of the Child Benefit received for every £200 of income over £60,000 a year, so an income of £70,000 would incur a charge of 50% of your Child Benefit¹.

At £80,000 or more, the charge equals the full amount of Child Benefit, so the payment is worth nothing in cash terms¹. The threshold rose from £50,000 to £60,000, and the point of full repayment from £60,000 to £80,000, from the 2024 to 2025 tax year¹.

The charge is not a separate tax bill that arrives in the post. It is collected through Self Assessment, or through your tax code if you arrange it, and it is the higher earner in a couple who pays it¹.

Threshold: £60,000 of adjusted net income

The charge is triggered when a Child Benefit claimant or their partner has an individual adjusted net income of more than £60,000. The higher earner is the one who pays⁶. It does not matter whether the Child Benefit is paid to the higher earner or to the lower earner: if your partner has taxable income of over £60,000 and you receive Child Benefit, your partner has to pay the tax charge⁷.

Adjusted net income is not the same as the salary figure on a payslip. It is your total taxable income, which includes savings interest and dividends. It is calculated before any Personal Allowances and less certain tax reliefs such as pension contributions and Gift Aid¹. That means a pay rise is not the only thing that can push someone over the line: a good year for savings interest, or a dividend payment, can do it too.

The threshold is tested per person, so a household with two parents each earning £60,000 has no charge, while a household with one parent earning £80,000 and the other earning nothing does. This is one of the most common points of confusion about the charge, and it is why the Office of Tax Simplification has examined how the charge operates in practice⁸.

For tax years up to and including 2023 to 2024, the starting threshold was £50,000 of adjusted net income per year¹. Before the changes, the charge started at £50,000 and the benefit was lost entirely once income reached £60,000³.

How the charge is worked out: 1% for every £200 over £60,000

The charge builds up gradually rather than applying all at once. You pay back 1% of your Child Benefit for every £200 you earn over the threshold¹. At £70,000, that is £10,000 over the threshold, which is 50 lots of £200, giving a charge of 50% of the Child Benefit received².

For tax years up to and including 2023 to 2024, the rate was 1% of Child Benefit for every £100 earned over the threshold¹. The change to £200 means the charge builds up more slowly, so the same income produces a smaller charge than under the old rules.

Anyone with an income over £80,000 faces a charge equal to 100% of their Child Benefit². At that point the benefit is fully repaid, and the cash value of claiming is nil.

Who pays when both partners earn more

If your adjusted net income is over the threshold and so is your partner's, then whoever has the higher income is responsible for paying the tax charge¹. You or your partner may have to pay if either of you receives Child Benefit and at least one of you earns more than the threshold¹.

The charge does not depend on your relationship to the child. It does not matter if the child living with you is not your own child¹. What matters is that Child Benefit is being received for a child in the household and that one of the adults has income above the threshold.

Child Benefit itself is not taxable, but it could make you liable for a tax charge if you or your partner earn over £60,000⁹. It is not strictly means-tested, but the high-income charge applies above the earnings threshold¹⁰. Families in receipt of Child Benefit will be subject to the charge if one or more parent has an income over £60,000 per year¹¹.

Paying through PAYE or Self Assessment

There are two ways to pay the charge. You can pay through PAYE, where it is collected through your tax code, or through Self Assessment¹. Complying with the charge involves filing a Self Assessment tax return unless you have arranged to pay it through PAYE⁸.

You must pay the tax charge through Self Assessment if you need to send a tax return for another reason, or if it is later than 31 January in the year after the tax year you need to pay for⁵. For the tax year starting 6 April 2025, if it is after 31 January 2027, you must make the payment through Self Assessment¹.

If you have previously completed a Self Assessment tax return to pay the tax charge and not for any other reason, you can choose to pay it through PAYE instead by contacting HMRC by phone to leave Self Assessment and register for PAYE payment¹. You will need your adjusted net income, the National Insurance number of any partner who received Child Benefit in the last tax year, and the dates of relationships with any partners receiving Child Benefit⁵.

Opting out of Child Benefit payments: what you keep and what you lose

If you opt out of receiving payments, you are still registered for Child Benefit but you do not receive the payment¹. You would not have to pay the tax charge, and you would still get National Insurance credits, which count towards your State Pension, and a National Insurance number for your child without them having to apply shortly before they turn 16 years old¹.

This is the option that preserves the protections of claiming while avoiding the charge. If you pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge, you will get no extra money¹⁵. Opting out of the payments means you keep the National Insurance record benefits without the cash changing hands and without a charge arising.

If you decide not to be paid your entitlement to Child Benefit to avoid the charge, you can still qualify for Guardian's Allowance¹⁶. That matters for anyone raising a child following the death of a parent, because opting out of Child Benefit payments does not close off that separate entitlement.

People who have an income between £60,000 and £80,000 are better off claiming Child Benefit and paying the charge than not claiming at all². The reason is the National Insurance credits and the child's National Insurance number, which are lost if you do not claim at all rather than opting out of payments.

Penalties and deadlines if you do not declare the charge

If you do not usually send a tax return, you need to tell HMRC by 5 October following the tax year you need to pay the tax charge for⁵. Missing that deadline, or missing the filing and payment deadlines that follow, exposes you to penalties.

You get a penalty if you need to send a tax return and you miss the deadline for submitting it or paying your bill⁴. The repayment is collected through the self-assessment tax system, so the ordinary Self Assessment penalty regime applies¹⁷.

The deadlines and penalties for late filing and late payment are set out in more detail on our pages on Self Assessment and late filing penalties. If a penalty has been charged and you had a good reason for the delay, there is a separate route through reasonable excuse.

Is it still worth claiming Child Benefit if I earn over £80,000?

If you earn more than £80,000, all of your Child Benefit will be recovered through income tax¹⁸. If your income is over £80,000, the charge will be equal to the full amount of your Child Benefit so you are no better off in cash terms¹⁹. Those earning more than £80,000 will effectively be paid nothing²⁰.

The cash is gone, but the claim itself still does something. National Insurance credits count towards your State Pension, and your child gets a National Insurance number without having to apply shortly before they turn 16¹. For a parent who has taken time out of work, those credits can be worth more than the benefit payment.

The alternative is to opt out of the payments while staying registered, which keeps the credits and the National Insurance number without triggering the charge¹. That is the option that avoids the administrative work of paying a charge that returns the whole payment.

What was the threshold before it went up to £60,000?

Before the changes, the charge started at £50,000 and the benefit was lost entirely once income reached £60,000³. The starting threshold was raised to £60,000 and the point of full repayment to £80,000 from the 2024 to 2025 tax year¹.

The rate at which the charge builds up also changed. For tax years up to and including 2023 to 2024, you paid back 1% of Child Benefit for every £100 earned over the threshold¹. From 2024 to 2025 onwards, it is 1% for every £200 over the threshold¹. The combined effect is that the charge starts later, builds up more slowly, and only reaches 100% at a higher income.

The income level at which the charge equalled full Child Benefit was raised from £60,000 in the 2024 Spring Budget². The change was made through a tax information and impact note explaining the increase to the High Income Child Benefit Charge threshold, effective from 6 April 2024²¹.

Where to get help

Child Benefit and the High Income Child Benefit Charge are administered by HMRC. The main guidance on the charge, including how to pay it and how to opt out of payments, is on GOV.UK¹. If you need to work out whether you are affected, the definition of adjusted net income and the 1% for every £200 rule are the two things to check first¹.

If you are not sure whether you need to file a return, our guide to registering for Self Assessment sets out the triggers. If you have stopped needing to file, there is a separate process for telling HMRC you no longer need to file a tax return.

Free and impartial help is available. MoneyHelper offers guidance on benefits and tax, and tax charities such as TaxAid can help people on lower incomes who cannot afford an adviser. The charity Turn2us has a benefits calculator and guidance on the charge¹⁹. If you are struggling with an HMRC penalty, the complaints process explains how to challenge a decision.