Strange scenario with evidencing tax credits

roje

I have a mortgage agreed in principle (natwest). LTV 44%.
Part of my income is tax credits, these have been used as part of the affordability calculations.
However, I start a new job in Sept and my wage will go up by over £10k as I am currently part time. My current 2015/16 tax credit renewal award is higher than it will be as it is based on my lower earnings (HMRC won't update it until I actually start the new job). The total I used for affordability purposes was the amount I will get when my salary goes up (I used the government calculator to find this out, for me this calculator has been quite accurate so far). It didn't occur to me at the time that I wouldn't be able to evidence this as I thought that when I did my renewal they'd input my new wage to work out the payments, I didn't know they would have to wait until the job started.

How can I evidence what my payments will be when I start my new job? Are they likely to accept the current award notice despite it stating a much lower wage? Or do Natwest allow bank statement evidence of tax credits?

Any help gratefully accepted. I do have a broker who is thinking of sending the current award plus screenshots of the calculator showing what I'd get based on my new salary, but as he said, anyone can log in and use that calculator. Ironically the mortgage co. themselves could easily input my details and confirm what I will be entitled to but this is obviously pretty irregular.

Not sure what else to do really. Has anyone had any experience of a scenario this complicated?!

roje

Meant to say that the mortgage is based on my new salary, not my current one.

keira1234

You can give HMRC an estimated income anytime. You don't have to wait until new job starts. Give them it now and they'll send a new award notice with that income on.

ACG

Will you need the tax credits or will your new income alone support it (in natwests eyes)?

Limited experience of things out of the oridinary with natwest but I tend to find if you provide them the evidence of what you have used (screenshots and a link to the site for example) and an explanation they tend to take a common sense approach.

If you do not need the tax credits then just put them as £0. No point in declaring incomes that are not needed as its just more work all round.

roje

I do need them to stretch affordability unfortunately, it's because I have 4 dependants so I think they'll only lend around 3 times my income? They apparently only use half of any secondary income? So you'd hope they would apply a common sense approach and realise that I will be well within their limits. Are natwest generally sensible lenders in this respect?

roje

keira1234 wrote: »

You can give HMRC an estimated income anytime. You don't have to wait until new job starts. Give them it now and they'll send a new award notice with that income on.

I asked them Keira and they said they can't change it until I start the new job?

keira1234

Tax credits works on a full tax years income not a monthly or weekly salary so you always provide them the full years estimate. Your are right that you can't update your hours worked until the change but income estimate can be done now. The sooner you give them you increased estimate the less likelihood of you being overpaid tax credits. (I was a tax credits advisor until recently)

roje

This states you tell them when the change has happened which is what two advisors have said on the phone to me?

https://www.gov.uk/changes-affect-tax-credits

It would be a lot easier if I could just tell them now.

Icequeen99

roje wrote: »

This states you tell them when the change has happened which is what two advisors have said on the phone to me?

https://www.gov.uk/changes-affect-tax-credits

It would be a lot easier if I could just tell them now.

Yes, but you are not reporting a job change - just an estimated income which you can give at any time. Income changes are not the same as other changes.

You are giving an estimated income - you don't need to mention the change of job at all just say you would like to update your 15/16 income.

IQ

roje

it says income changes 'when the change has happened' too? I've tried to update them on the phone twice now and both advisors kept saying that I need to report it when the new job has started and they can't take the details now. What's going on?!

roje

The income on the award still won't add up anyway will it as it will have my wages from Apr-sept in my current job then from sept-apr in my new job so would throw yet another figure into the mix which doesn't match the income on my job offer. I wish they made it less complicated.