HMRC warns thousands of parents missing out on up to £2,212 a year

Parents across the country are being advised not to miss out on up to £2,212 a year in extra financial support. And it's all down to Child Benefit.

The benefit is aimed at supporting parents raising children under the age of 16 (or 20 if they stay in education or training) with no limit being applied for how many children parents can claim for. A family can get £25.60 a week for their eldest child plust £16.96 a week for any other children.

This equates to £1,331.20 a year for just one child and £2,212.60 a year for two children. Latest data from HM Revenue and Customs states that six million famillies across the UK are receiving payments from Child Benefit.

Despite this, thousands of families are missing out on the extra financial support. Data obtained by The Sun reveals that around 214,000 eligible parents don't apply for Child Benefit each year.

The benefit also has the added perk of awarding National Insurance Credits which could help boost some parents' State Pension. Generally, a minimum of 10 years' worth of credits are needed to claim the State Pension, while 35 years of credit are usually needed to receive the full State Pension. This is especially beneficial for parents not in paid employment and those not receiving NI credits from their employer.

High Income warning

The key drawback to Child Benefit is the high income charge. If either a parent or their partner's income is over £60,000 a year, they may have to pay an extra charge on their benefit. This will carry on until a parent's individual income goes over £80,000 - in which case the whole benefit amount will need to be repaid, essentially making it redundant unless you fall out of work and need the benefit for the NI credits it provides.

How to apply for Child Benefit

In order to begin a claim for the benefit, a family will need:

• their National Insurance number and that of their partner, if applicable.
• the child's original birth or adoption certificate and passport or travel document, for children born outside the UK.
• their child's birth or adoption certificate.
• their bank account details

A claim can be made from 48 hours after the birth of a child has been registered or once a child comes to live with you. Furthermore, a claim can be backdated to up to three months.

It's important to note that only one person can receive Child Benefit for a child so if there are two parents you will need to decide which one will receive the payment. This will also be the person who receives the National Insurance credits from the claim which may influence your decision.

Applications for Child Benefit can be made online through GOV.UK where you will be provided a form that needs to be filled in. In some cases you may need to print and send the completed form to HMRC along with evidence documents.