carers allowance

smk77

We get DLA middle rate care for our daughter. My wife's weekly income is above the £100 a week threshold for claiming carers allowance. However, the claim form states:

Working out your weekly earnings

When we work out your weekly earnings we only look at what you have earned after you have paid: l National Insurance (NI) contributions l income tax l half of any money you pay towards personal and occupational pension schemes. We also allow up to half of the rest of your earnings for paying someone from outside your family to look after children, or the person you look after, when you are at work.

This is where it gets confusing. Our childcare costs are met from a combination of childcare vouchers (from my work) and tax credits (the childcare element). So, whilst our childcare cost are about £600 a month, we don't pay for it all. Also, £50 a month is paid by my vouchers so it's not really an expense that my wife has.

If we take half of the £600 a month as stated above, then my wife's earnings are less than £100 a week. If use the amount we actually pay in child care (£600 minus tax credits minus vouchers) then she's above the £100 threshold.

Any ideas?