Tax credit glitch -NEED SERIOUS ADVICE

FightClub

Hi, this is complicated so I'll try to keep it succinct. Tax credits told me on the phone today that they have been calculating every years tax credits award on our salary in 2013/14, which was £23000 approx, even though we earnt £6000 in 2014/15 and about £10000 in 2015/16 (reason for this is because I went back to uni to get my PGCE). So, I've checked our award notices and it states the accurate figures for each year but then adds the 2013/14 amount as the total for 2013/14. I didnt think it was actually taking the 2013/14 amount as accountable in the calculations, that is why I have ever disputed it. The calculation for tax credits is so confusing I've never known how it's worked out to know that is wasn't enough. According to the operator at tax credit they've been calculating our tax credits last year and this year on an income of 2013/14 and ignoring our actual year's earnings. So, they owe us but how do I find out exactly how much? And how can we make sure we get the money? This has all come about because they wanted to stop our claim completely due to apparent overpayments of childcare. We don't have much and life is hard enough without them takin away money we rely on. Can anyone give us advice, please? Thank you:)

Caz3121

were you both working over 16 hours per week? (£6,000 seems a low amount for 2 x 16 hours minimum) If not then childcare would not be payable through tax credits
There should be notification on the award notice about contacting them re any changes in income...did you do this through the year and receive revised award notices? Any underpayment for 14/15 should have been sorted out when you completed your renewal around June time...however this may be confused if you had included childcare costs that should not have been there. Your 15/16 award should have been based on the 14/15 income initially...not 13/14
Are you both working over 16 hours per week now to be entitled to childcare?

Darksparkle

I thought the awards notices has a section that said "income used to calculate your tax credit claim" or something similar.

As caz has mentioned, can you confirm how many hours you both worked in 2014/15?

How many hours do you both work in 2015/16?

Is the £6000 and £10000 each or total?

2015/16 claim is simple to fix, tell them what you expect to earn.

2014/15 will be more complicated as that claim will have been finalised last year. You'll need to ask if they will change it, if not you'll need to appeal.

FightClub

Every time we had a change in circumstances we notified them. We were using childcare for a time and did tell them when that stopped in August. I have the award notice for 2014/15, I only worked for 3 months in that tax year and earnt £1346. It says that on the award notice and then states my 2013/14 earnings directly underneath. The award doesn't look wrong but according to the operator he said on the system it said I was still earning 20k at the close of 2014/15 tax year. Something is wrong there. In fact they sent me a letter saying I owed them £650.

Our tax credit award for this year also states the 2013/14 income. It does not say how they calculate the award though I didnt think that they were using the 2013/14 figure for 2015/16.

It isn't right and we have always notified them of changes to childcare an earning, I even have a notice from August that says We were not entitled to childcare then from nowhere its back on the claim according to the tax credits phone operator.

They have messed it all up and I want to know from somebody how I can find out how to get the accurate underpayment figures.

Darksparkle

FightClub wrote: »

Every time we had a change in circumstances we notified them. We were using childcare for a time and did tell them when that stopped in August. I have the award notice for 2014/15, I only worked for 3 months in that tax year and earnt £1346. It says that on the award notice and then states my 2013/14 earnings directly underneath. The award doesn't look wrong but according to the operator he said on the system it said I was still earning 20k at the close of 2014/15 tax year. Something is wrong there. In fact they sent me a letter saying I owed them £650.

Our tax credit award for this year also states the 2013/14 income. It does not say how they calculate the award though I didnt think that they were using the 2013/14 figure for 2015/16.

It isn't right and we have always notified them of changes to childcare an earning, I even have a notice from August that says We were not entitled to childcare then from nowhere its back on the claim according to the tax credits phone operator.

They have messed it all up and I want to know from somebody how I can find out how to get the accurate underpayment figures.

Without knowing all the relevant dates of when you worked/didn't work, had childcare/didn't have childcare it's not possible for us to calculate it.

As mentioned, if you report the correct details now and it's updated, you'll get an award for 2015/16. That will confirm if any under/overpayments. You normally get the award within a couple of weeks.

2014/15 as explained in my earlier post, they need to decide if they are going to change it.