Tax credits - new job, very confused

linnyp

I'd love it if anyone can help.
I've been playing around with the calculators on entitledto.com and the taxcredits website to see how much better or worse off we would be if I started working part time. We have 3 children, all of whom I would some degree of childcare for. At the moment it is only my partner who is working. SOooooo - into the calculator I put his current wage, what my expected wage would be, and what our expected childcare costs would be.
Still with me? Ok, the figure it chucks back at me for how much we would be entitled to weekly is about £20 more than we are getting now with just my partner working, yet it says that at that level of income we wouldn't be entitled to help with childcare. So in that case how come it's coming out with a higher amount of tax credits per week? Surely it should be less because our total income would be higher???? Confused!!
I think the tax credits site you have to divide the figure by the number of weeks left in the tax year don't you? I did that and it's still coming out at £20 higher than now - both sites come up with pretty much the same amount.
Do you think it's right? If it is, then it's worth me going back to work - just doesn't seem quite right though somehow to have a higher income and more tax credits too.

CIS

If your not working 16hrs p/w or more , then unless disabilities come in to it, you aren't eligible to claim any childcare help, so its probbaly the childcare help that you would be able to claim thats bumping the figure up a bit, after your extra income has been taken in to account.

linnyp

Well that's what I thought - but it specifically said that because we wouldn't be entitled to the working tax bit of it we weren't entitled to childcare help. I based it on me working 20hrs per week - so are they saying that if you are in a couple where one works full time and one works 16 hours + you *can* get some childcare help even if you are only getting the child tax bit of it?

CIS

so are they saying that if you are in a couple where one works full time and one works 16 hours + you *can* get some childcare help even if you are only getting the child tax bit of it?

You can, depending on income, most people with childcare can get something as the childcare they pay out is often quite high.

What will be your combined total income and how much do you pay out childcare per week ?

linnyp

Combined income would be £25K and childcare costs averaged out over the year is £88 weekly.

linnyp

Thinking about it that's not right. Partners wage £21K, I would be earning £6500 a year but this year I would only be working August till April so more like £4300 as not a full year? So the childcare figure would have to be less wouldn't it or they would be accounting for a whole year's worth of childcare costs rather than the 8 months Aug - April.

CIS

The award wil be paid on last your income though, as long as this years income is not more than £25K higher than last yrs, in in effect you can most probably go to work this year without the extra income reducing your tax credits, and you'll probably get extra for the childcare.

linnyp

So do I have to tell them I've started work or just wait until the end of the tax year? Or I suppose I'd have to tell them if I wanted to try and get any childcare help. Hmmmmmmmmmmm

CIS

Best to tell them all changes now, as some changes can only be backdated for 3 month.