Better off Financially living apart or as a couple?

krisskross

petercarots wrote: »

The reason why I say that you'd be likely to be much better off in the first year is the tax credits 25k income disregard, where you can earn up to 25k more than you earned in the previous year, so if you didnt work last year, then the award would be based on would be the incapacity benefit.

Surely doing this would lead to an overpayment when next years P60 goes in. You can't claim tax credits on £5000 a year, then earn £20,000 for instance and not have to pay anything back can you?

DazzerG

krisskross wrote: »

Surely doing this would lead to an overpayment when next years P60 goes in. You can't claim tax credits on £5000 a year, then earn £20,000 for instance and not have to pay anything back can you?

The reason for the 25K disregard is to reduce the number of overpayments, so yes you can.

astonsmummy

yes but then the next year the tax credits would be based to the last years £20k earnngs and the op would get sod all tx credits.
I'd advise people to phone and tell them as soon as income changes.

Back to the op, if you work u'd have to pay maintenence wich she would only get £10 of, plus if you was only working 16 hours you would have to live on that with no tax credits as you would be a NRP.

djdoc1975

petercarots wrote: »

You'd be better off living together in my opinion, espescially in the first year.

If you were living alone, then you wouldnt qualify for WTC as a single person living alone with no children/disability needs to be working 30+ hours per week, but if you were living with a child then you would only have to work 16 hours per week to get WTC

Obviously she would lose her income support but the WTC would make up for that. I'm not sure how your income would affect the incapacity benefit but assuming it didnt, your HHincome would be around 12500/year, so you would still get a fair amount of CTC.

The reason why I say that you'd be likely to be much better off in the first year is the tax credits 25k income disregard, where you can earn up to 25k more than you earned in the previous year, so if you didnt work last year, then the award would be based on would be the incapacity benefit.

Sorry I didnt get to reading your mail earlier, as I would have given this answer without needing to pry into your circumstances. I try to be positive about people and assume that they are being honest rather than automatically assuming that they are trying to beat the system.

Thank you peter, its hard enough sorting myself out and then having people like margaret saying oh what is the world coming to, you should be together as a family blah blah etc etc.....

I do want to be with my family but at the moment there safety is the most important thing in my life and i aim to keep it that way.

I'd rather not be on benefits at all and let someone who needs them get the money, but at the mo i'll take all the help i can get from the government. Like everyone says if your entitled to something then get it. I just wondered what we were entitled to as a family.

Craig

djdoc1975

kelloggs36 wrote: »

I think I might 'separate' from my husband just to get more money. Off to the Tax Credit office then to make my claim....oh, and income support and council tax benefit and housing benefit, whilst still maintaining a relationship with my husband albeit by staying at his twice a week and him visiting me for conjugal rights....

as said previously i live away from my partner and son so as to maintain there safety, now if your husband is violent then maybe your should too!!

Oh and thanks for understanding and answering the question NOT!!

Craig

astonsmummy

DJ
I think the first thing you need to think about is your family (which you seem to be doing) theres no harm in you living apart whilst you sort yourself out, the financiall stuff really pales into comparison dont you think?
If you were better off by alot would you move straight in or wait?

margaretclare

djdoc1975 wrote: »

Thank you peter, its hard enough sorting myself out and then having people like margaret saying oh what is the world coming to, you should be together as a family blah blah etc etc.....

I do want to be with my family but at the moment their safety is the most important thing in my life and i aim to keep it that way.

You should have said this in the first place. Your partner has a legitimate reason for not wanting you to move in with her. You are to be commended for being concerned about their safety, but your partner also has her son to think about. Mothers tend to think differently about these things.

Unfortunately, the way the benefits system is set up at present, it is possible to ask this kind of a question, and there are people who will sit down and work out what benefits they can get by remaining as 2 singles, even with a child or children between them, than by living together. It happens, and I have heard this question asked time and time again. As if we were really going to make it easy for people! Martin has stressed many times that this is a money-saving site, not a site for seeing how much you can get from the benefits system. As for 'what is the world coming to blah blah' I said no such thing.

I personally would not live with a violent partner, and I would not give up my own home if there was any such risk. Your partner, with the child, are the vulnerable ones here. I know how hard it can be to get a council place - my granddaughter has only recently been through this because of homelessness and unemployment, and I know she values the flat she's had since March. She wouldn't put it into jeopardy for anything. Your partner may possibly feel the same.

Margaret

djdoc1975

My family are the most important thing to me yes, but i worry about there safety as i occasionally have a relapse ( its not physical anymore but i do get quite verbal). I'd rather they didnt have to see that side of me.

But saying that i would love to live with them asap i just need to feel ready and confident in myself that i can be a good partner/dad.

My partner has a spare room that i can use to calm myself down ( i think a trial run is order).

Thank you all for your help( well those that helped and not griped)
Craig

djdoc1975

margaretclare wrote: »

You should have said this in the first place. Your partner has a legitimate reason for not wanting you to move in with her. You are to be commended for being concerned about their safety, but your partner also has her son to think about. Mothers tend to think differently about these things.

Unfortunately, the way the benefits system is set up at present, it is possible to ask this kind of a question, and there are people who will sit down and work out what benefits they can get by remaining as 2 singles, even with a child or children between them, than by living together. It happens, and I have heard this question asked time and time again. As if we were really going to make it easy for people! Martin has stressed many times that this is a money-saving site, not a site for seeing how much you can get from the benefits system. As for 'what is the world coming to blah blah' I said no such thing.

I personally would not live with a violent partner, and I would not give up my own home if there was any such risk. Your partner, with the child, are the vulnerable ones here. I know how hard it can be to get a council place - my granddaughter has only recently been through this because of homelessness and unemployment, and I know she values the flat she's had since March. She wouldn't put it into jeopardy for anything. Your partner may possibly feel the same.

Margaret

Thank you, I'm not in it for the money although that would help... i want whats best for the 3 of us as a family.

Its me who is choosing not to live with them at present, my partner wants me to move in, but i need to know in my mind that they are both safe.

Craig

lil_me

When my partner lived away from us when we were seperated I was better off financially but he wasn't as he had CSA payments to make. As a couple with him working as he was, not far off the same hours as you, we would have been better off living together and claiming tax credits (was family credit then) as basically what I got in one hand they took away from him in CSA payments, that of course wasn't my problem at the time as he was living elsewhere and paying his own rent etc. There was also many interviews on many occasions as they thought we were living together, nothing came of these but there was videos and photographs taken of him coming to collect our son, us leaving my house together to go to my sons appointments in his car, bank statements obtained etc. I can't understand how those who do it to 'cheat the system' as some put it get away with it for as long as they do as the investigations were extremely thorough.

If there are safety issues that you are so concerned about when it comes to your own anger, which are so bad that that is why you do not live with them now, then I can't understand why you are considering financial matters. Obviously their safetly should come first. I think the first thing I would be looking into is support with dealing with your anger before even considering joining them if it is as risky as you say.

If it is safe, the best thing for your family is to be together, regardless of the financial side of things, if it is not safe, then better off apart in my opinion

So you know I am not speaking without knowing what you are going through, I am someone who has lived with a violent partner in the past and now living with the same person who is no longer violent and hasn't been for many years. People can change if they want to, he's walking proof of that. He was extremely violent previously, I won't go into details but at that point it was better off us living apart. I did love him and did want to be with him but had to give him the time and space to sort himself out first.

Good luck sorting your issues with your anger.