MSE News: Families must prepare for tax credits c...

[MSE Guy]

This is the discussion thread for the following MSE News Story:

"Hundreds of thousands of benefits recipients will see a dramatic fall or even an end to their tax credits under a raft of reforms next month ..."

Read the full story:
Families must prepare for tax credits cut

[zagfles]

The "Working tax credit eligibility Maximum household income" table makes no sense at all!

ETA: just worked out it's based on max childcare costs and includes CTC.

[jellyhead]

I've given myself a headache trying to do the maths!

It says families with 2 children will still get some tax credit up to the max of £32,200 but by my calculations it runs out before reaching the £32,200 quoted. I give up

I won't get it anyway because they add so much on for the company car - I was just curious after talking to a friend about the figures, and she thought she'd still get the family element.

[zagfles]

£32200 is correct with 2 kids, if working 30+ hours.

The article is a bit misleading as it implies WTC and CTC are separate things calculated separately. The £15860 threshold only applies to those not entitled to WTC, those who are get the WTC elements and the threshold of £6420.

For someone working 30+ hours with 2 kids the threshold is (1920+1950+790+2*2690+545)/0.41 + 6420 = 32237.

[gingergee]

God yr good!! Get more sense from you than anyone on phone!! lol xxx

[Fliss M]

I give up trying to work it out. I knew we'd get little for 2. were ttc number 2 now but we would like 3. Its the help towards number 3 I wanted to know, if we could afford it before planning it (full time nursery 1.4k at least) buut when I called the said the 32k for 2 kids was the top thresh hold, that there were no more for 3 and 4. If they dont know I havent got a prayer! lol

[Sixer]

Originally Posted by zagfles

£32200 is correct with 2 kids, if working 30+ hours.

The article is a bit misleading as it implies WTC and CTC are separate things calculated separately. The £15860 threshold only applies to those not entitled to WTC, those who are get the WTC elements and the threshold of £6420.

For someone working 30+ hours with 2 kids the threshold is (1920+1950+790+2*2690+545)/0.41 + 6420 = 32237.

Just to add clarification: people NOT entitled to WTC aren't people who earn too much to get it. They're people who aren't working - or aren't working enough to be entitled to WTC - but have children, so are entitled to CTC.

[jazabelle]

Can someone explain to me if Working Tax Credits are changing for those with disabilities? We currently have to work 16 hours or more - is this staying the same please? I'm worried.

[Cleosmum]

If the amounts are changing then should a letter have been sent out by now? Not easy to budget if no-one is going to tell us how much we will be getting. I haven't had anything from them regarding a change and I won't be best pleased if they just change it. I am still trying to recover from the last change which saw me lose £50 pw without warning

[jacqui82]

Hiya, I wonder if anyone can help me here. Does anyone know how the change will effect me please! My partner is currently looking for work and reiceves no benefit but is in the system, he wasnt entitled to any extra cash when I was working as I was earning to much apparently with my wage+child tax credit+working tax credit combined.Currently I am on maternity leave until June 2012 and receive working tax credit and child tax credit plus my weekly wage minus 10%.The problem is the hours i used to work were 18 hours a week and I have no way of changing them unless I actually go back to work early I'm really not ready to go back as the little one is too little at the moment. If I stop getting working tax credit I will lose 70 pounds a week bringing our whole household income in at roughly 190 a week including child benefit.I just need to know how it will Affect us. If anyone can shed some light I would be grateful , thanks

[Charityworker]

I wish I had the second posters problem. We are a family of 4 on a COMBINED income of £5058 per year. Oldest daughter at college full time with a 4 hour a week job which pays £24 a week of which the bus fairs to and from college every week is £29, youngest daughter at school, husband seeking work. I have asked my employer to up my hours but its a charity so they cant. We have both been looking for work with more hours but have not been successful. I started making crafts with the view of starting a small business selling crafts but when I phoned WTC for some advice they said it was not a viable business. So we are now set to lose the £74 a week WTC which made it worth my while to work. I'm thinking maybe I should give up my job, sign on the dole and then be £10 a week better off than I would when working. Wheres the incentive to work in that? Before you all get on your high horses, I'm not actually going to give up my job but you can see my point.

[krisskross]

Originally Posted by Charityworker

I wish I had the second posters problem. We are a family of 4 on a COMBINED income of £5058 per year. Oldest daughter at college full time with a 4 hour a week job which pays £24 a week of which the bus fairs to and from college every week is £29, youngest daughter at school, husband seeking work. I have asked my employer to up my hours but its a charity so they cant. We have both been looking for work with more hours but have not been successful. I started making crafts with the view of starting a small business selling crafts but when I phoned WTC for some advice they said it was not a viable business. So we are now set to lose the £74 a week WTC which made it worth my while to work. I'm thinking maybe I should give up my job, sign on the dole and then be £10 a week better off than I would when working. Wheres the incentive to work in that? Before you all get on your high horses, I'm not actually going to give up my job but you can see my point.

Does that include child benefit and child tax credits? If it does then something is very wrong.

Have you claimed LHA/HB and council tax benefit? You must be entitled to them.

[damonflash]

Could someone help, the article states:

Maximum income
To qualify for working tax credits, you must also earn below the income caps, which will be broadly similar from 6 April.
They are as follows:
Working tax credit eligibility Maximum household income
__________2011/12 2012/131
No of kids
___2______ £58,200 £58,900

But on the letter from HMRC it states the income limit for WTC for joint households is £18000?

I've just contacted contacted the Tax Credits hotline and they advised that the article is false?

They have stopped our CTC as income over £32000, mainly due to their silly valuations on company car elements... I was just looking to see if we were eligible for anything as we really haven't budgeted for this change.

[xAlisonx]

I found the following website really helpful. It works out what CTC you should get in 2012/2013 and compares this against what you would have got before the changes. According to my figures I think ours is going down by approx £13 a year and I'm thinking myself lucky compared to what others will be losing. I can't believe this government is just going to force more and more children into poverty, it's a disgrace.

http://www.worksmart.org.uk/cutscalculator/calc-ws.php

[xAlisonx]

Originally Posted by Charityworker

I wish I had the second posters problem. We are a family of 4 on a COMBINED income of £5058 per year. Oldest daughter at college full time with a 4 hour a week job which pays £24 a week of which the bus fairs to and from college every week is £29, youngest daughter at school, husband seeking work. I have asked my employer to up my hours but its a charity so they cant. We have both been looking for work with more hours but have not been successful. I started making crafts with the view of starting a small business selling crafts but when I phoned WTC for some advice they said it was not a viable business. So we are now set to lose the £74 a week WTC which made it worth my while to work. I'm thinking maybe I should give up my job, sign on the dole and then be £10 a week better off than I would when working. Wheres the incentive to work in that? Before you all get on your high horses, I'm not actually going to give up my job but you can see my point.

I really feel for you and hope you manage to find a job with more hours or your hubby finds employment.

[Marisco]

[QUOTE=Charityworker;51773365] We are a family of 4 on a COMBINED income of £5058 per year.


Have you left a nought out somewhere?? 5k a year is only 97 quid a week!!!

[ferry]

The obvious message here,reading through this thread and many others on the forum,is that the whole TC system is a huge complicated mess that the ordinary public just doesn't understand(see the numerous " what will I be able to claim in April" help requests)

Just wait for the wave of threads asking for advice on overpayment letters that will come flooding in from HMRC post renewals even though claimants are reporting changes honestly and on time.

[xAlisonx]

[QUOTE=Marisco;51775661]

Originally Posted by Charityworker

We are a family of 4 on a COMBINED income of £5058 per year.


Have you left a nought out somewhere?? 5k a year is only 97 quid a week!!!

As it's the mum working and she's looking for more hours, I'm presuming she's probably working 16 hours a week right now? I only do 16 hours minimum wage unfortunately as it's the only job I can get right now and I'm on even less than that but luckily my hubby has a reasonable job.

[Cleosmum]

Could someone tell me what the changes were last april as I was under the impression that they had done away with the 30 hour element and that was why my weekly amount dropped by £50. All the hype at the time said that the average family would lose about £500 over the year, ours dropped by over £2600! Our circs didn't change at all.

I'm really confused by a letter this morning, I updated to say I am no longer at work, when I run it through the entitled to website it says we should be getting £20 pw extra in wtc/ctc but hmrc have decided we are entitled to less than we were receiving when I was working 20 hrs pw?

[clayts]

Originally Posted by jazabelle

Can someone explain to me if Working Tax Credits are changing for those with disabilities? We currently have to work 16 hours or more - is this staying the same please? I'm worried.

It's unchanged as far as I am aware