Childcare benefit when children split their time between 2 different houses

Mojisola

DevilsAdvocate1 wrote: »

So should the parents have claimed child benefit so that mum claimed twin 1 and dad twin 2?

Or do the parents have to be living separately?

The parents have to be separated and running two households.

NYM

racon wrote: »

Hey. That's how it should be done, I agree. That way you can maximise both parent's benefit entitlement.
It is a while ago, I know of a mum that arranged that all cash gifts that were given to her children from various family members for Christmas and birthdays came with a HMRC form, R185. This showed that the gift was net of tax. As the children were not liable to income tax, they, with mum's help, claimed the tax that had been 'deducted' from the gifts.
eg Total gifts in the year were £500, the tax deducted would have been £125. This would make the gift worth £625 to the child. A 40% taxpayer would see that refund go from £125 to £333. Obviously the donors had to be taxpayers. Also none of those gifts effected any benefits that mum received.

Are you absolutely sure about that ???

An R185 is completed by a person making a payment of interest, an alternative finance receipt, annual payment or annuity where income tax has been deducted from the payment.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/372719/r185cert.pdf

racon

NYM wrote: »

Are you absolutely sure about that ???

An R185 is completed by a person making a payment of interest, an alternative finance receipt, annual payment or annuity where income tax has been deducted from the payment.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/372719/r185cert.pdf

Hey, sorry I confused the issue. The donor (aunt, uncle etc), provided that they paid tax on their earnings or investments, would complete the R185 and hand it over with the gift. The child would receive the gift (say £100) and put a claim into HMRC as they are not liable to tax. HMRC would then give the child another £25 'free'. Mum arranged for the donors that paid tax to complete and sign the R185 for the gifts made.

NYM

racon wrote: »

Hey, sorry I confused the issue. The donor (aunt, uncle etc), provided that they paid tax on their earnings or investments, would complete the R185 and hand it over with the gift. The child would receive the gift (say £100) and put a claim into HMRC as they are not liable to tax. HMRC would then give the child another £25 'free'. Mum arranged for the donors that paid tax to complete and sign the R185 for the gifts made.

No. Think again.

racon

NYM wrote: »

No. Think again.

Hey, no I don't have to. HMRC accepted the situation and accepted the claims and paid out.
If you think that she or HMRC were wrong, do you think that you could enlighten us all on here where it is wrong? It seems that you are suggesting that you have an in-depth knowledge of the UK tax system. In the meantime I am going along with what I have said based on the fact that it worked!

Horseunderwater

I believe it does still apply, so long as it is an annual payment to the non tax payer from a tax payer. So a birthday & Christmas would come under that heading. Anyone can down load form R185 from here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/trusts-and-estates-certificate-of-deduction-of-income-tax-r185.

NYM

Horseunderwater wrote: »

I believe it does still apply, so long as it is an annual payment to the non tax payer from a tax payer. So a birthday & Christmas would come under that heading. Anyone can down load form R185 from here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/trusts-and-estates-certificate-of-deduction-of-income-tax-r185.

From your link...

Trusts and estates: certificate of deduction of Income Tax (R185)

squidworth

Just to say that true 50/50 sharing can work without upsetting the children, it's whatever works in the situation. In my experience the best solution was to work on a school term by term basis, whereby the children saw the non resident parent every other weekend and lived with the primary parent. Every school term (typically mid way through the break) the parents role would switch, thus the main home would only change 3 times a year and equal sharing over the years.

For child benefits, and the tax credits that by association go with it, are by law given to the mother and the father has no rights, unless he goes to court and it's unlikely he would win. A father can only really get the benefits he may be entitled to if the mother decides to give them up, he has no automatic right to child benefits or tax credits even if th children live with him.

UK law assumes fathers are evil and only mothers can raise children, regardless of whether the mother is violent or where the children live.

squidworth

Ps both children, now around 20 years old, now live with me, their father, as I was in reality their primary carer for years anyway even if the courts and tax office refused to acept who was raising the children. She got the money i got the kids. For a period I did get the child benefits etc as they were relinquished to me.

Despite my filling in all the renewals and keeping hmrc updated, they now say I have overpaid (no warning or reason, they never send out why they think I owe them despite numerous written and phone requests).

And now they are taking over £3000, that's about 2 months salary, via paye and have stated in have no right to appeal as an overpayment.

They won't say why or let me appeal, but we are going to be in serious debt this year and I won't post here what I think of them.