Univeral Credit & Child Savings Accounts

atlantis187

Majority of the money came from when my wife got made redundant last year and not what some of you claim "government hand outs"

This government screws us everyway possible rather thank tackling the people at the top the banks, energy companies, mp's expenses, fuel companies.

Why should we not do whats best for us, no other tom !!!!!! and harry is gonna look out for us.

BurnleyBob

princessdon wrote: »

Until they reach a point where they stop of course. I have always failed to see why tax credits and savings were not linked.

They weren't linked because it was a vote buying exercise.

I can agree that everyone should be equal at some future UC start date, for example 01-01-2014. But those in receipt of the Tax Credits element under UC on that date shouldn't be penalised if they had above £6K in capital and savings one day, week, month, year or 14 months prior in the OP's case because the government deigned to move the goalposts.

They should be able to, if they choose, spend, give away, burn, hide in their sock drawer, etc, etc, any excess rather than effectively have the state claw back what they acquired when the rules were different.

paddedjohn

princessdon wrote: »

Until they reach a point where they stop of course. I have always failed to see why tax credits and savings were not linked.

I fail to see why they actually exist. (apart from the fact they attract votes) A better system would have been to forget them altogether and raise the lower earnings threshold so workers dont pay any tax on earnings less than £20k, this would make work pay.

BurnleyBob

Doing that would have been much simpler and created much less paperwork. But shuffling bits of paper around keeps civil servants occupied.

But the huge plus for the state is Tax Credits claimants were then state dependent rather than independent. Being so gives the state more control over their lives. And that will really become much more evident when UC is introduced because as someone else remarked in this thread many in receipt of Tax Credits are blissfully unaware that they are indeed state benefits.

danielanthony

Fundamentally what the OP is asking is how to hide his money so that he will still be entitled to UC, which is fraud. So why the big debate about the morality of having savings whilst on benefits as clearly the government is trying to make the system fairer by not paying benefits to those with a lot of money sitting in the bank!

BurnleyBob

Fraud is a bit strong. UC isn't law yet. No-one knows the details of how it will look, not even the government.

I have no idea whether the OP can access the £20K. If he can I wouldn't blame him for making it disappear long before UC's introduction.

If you think it's okay to punish those who will claim the Tax Credits element of UC retrospectively for having above £6K from the day before it's voted in, as your message suggests, then where would the amnesty begin? A year before the Queen gives Royal Assent? How about 20 years prior?

YOUR ENTITLEMENT TO UNIVERSAL CREDIT

MR & MRS J & L BLOGGS,

Our records indicate that for a period of six months during 1999, your joint savings account had a balance of £20,000. Our investigations has determined that your capital and savings today total £1,500.

Universal Credit is a means-tested benefit with a lower capital and savings threshold of £6,000. Please provide evidence within the next 28 days that details how you spent that money because we need to decide whether you deliberately lowered your capital and savings to maximise any means-tested benefit that you may become entitled to in future.

Would that be fair? The principle's the same.

plum2002

UC is going to be phased in starting from next year, what the OP does with his money NOW, is entirely his business, right NOW there are no means testing rules for TC's. I'd pay a chunk off the mortgage if I were in his position.

Maureen43

Is it fair to say that nobody can actually answer the OP's question about whether childrens' savings are taken into account under UC?

I would be interested to know about this.

plum2002

Maureen43 wrote: »

Is it fair to say that nobody can actually answer the OP's question about whether childrens' savings are taken into account under UC?

I would be interested to know about this.

They will be if he has access to the money.

xylophone

Even if he puts the cash into CTF/JISA so that he does not have access to the money, there could be a "deprivation of capital to obtain benefits" problem?

If he puts the money into any other child account, the money is the child's absolutely (even though as bare Trustee he would have control of it) but he would still have deprived himself of capital by making an absolute gift and as well as being treated as though he still owned the capital, could end up paying tax at his own highest marginal rate if the "£100 rule" came into play?