CSA assessment of WTC

[NotaDisneyMum]

I posted this on the Money board but there's not a lot of traffic there!

My DP is subject to a CSA case but has been assessed as minimum payments for the last year as he's been unemployed. We've been receiving WTC because I've got a P/T job and am self employed - they have based the payments on an estimate of my annual earnings.
DP has secured a low paying p/t job - and we will continue to receive some WTC. I know that if he is the higher earner in the household, the CSA include the WTC as part of his income for assessment purposes, but if I'm the higher earner, they don't. But over what period? Some weeks/months, I'll earn more than DP, but other weeks/months I won't have much work and he'll earn more.

Help! How does this work? His CSA assessment year doesn't run in line with the tax year, so that's no help either!

[MelodyPondering]

Surely they would take your salary from last year p60?

[elliebellys]

I think csa would count half of wtc on top of his earnings to make the assessment of maintenance.

[NotaDisneyMum]

It's not as simple as that, I'm afraid - I don't have a P60 from last year

DP was made redundant 12 months ago, I was made redundant 6 months before that and we have both been in receipt of JSA in that time; my income last year was minimal because my new business didn't make a profit; so the HMRC needed an estimate of my income for this year, for tax credit purposes and will finalise the figure we're owed once I've submitted my tax return next July!

[NotaDisneyMum]

ellie Do you think do? I know that they would do that if I earned the same as DP - will I have to send my documentation to the CSA for assessment as well?!?

[NotaDisneyMum]

*think so, not think do!

[AnitaBlake]

Did the HMRC not give you a breakdown of how much you'd each been address as earning, that you could use to show who they'd determined as the primary earner?

[elliebellys]

Tax credits info is shared with csa they might base an assessment on those figures to start with,then when your accounts are submitted for tax credits it should automatically be updated on all systems.then if you are the main earner they should reassess.csaare a law to themselves tho.:-)

[NotaDisneyMum]

anita - yes, based on annual figures, not weekly or monthly ones !

[NotaDisneyMum]

ellie. I didn't think the HMRC and CSA were sharing info yet? Isn't that still in consultation?

[elliebellys]

Believe me csa do know more than what they make out,especially tax credits.

[NotaDisneyMum]

Ok - so what, if anything, are we legally obliged to tell/send to the CSA?

DP was stung a few years ago when the CSA had failed to adjust payments after a change in overnight contact arrangements - the last thing I want is for him to be hit for arrears which we could avoid.

[AnitaBlake]

Our CSA is a law unto itself for assessment, I would go with whoever the HMRC have assessed as primary earner until next assessment and if anything changes, tell them asap.

[elliebellys]

Does the tax credit assessment state both your earnins.?

[digerd]

I think that is unfair. Why should a woman/man who is not the parent of a child have to pay for the child of her/his partner or DH./DW? Doesn't happen elsewhere in EU. Only the blood -line parents are responsible for their children ?

[elliebellys]

Digerd then if thats true then there shudnt be a reduction for children in household if not nrps natural child.works both ways.the whole system stinks.

[NotaDisneyMum]

ellie we have a current Tax Credit notice which states both mine and DPs estimated earnings; it is a single figure for eCh of us that accounts for all the estimated income we will have in the 12 months.


Once DP starts his new job, and we notify them, we'll get a new Tax Credit notice which will set out DPs new earnings as well as mine in the same way.

My concern is that DPs figure will be lower than mine, so in theory I'll be the primary income earner, but I will have been earning all year, whereas DP will only have 6 months of pay on the Tax Credit notice.
The CSA don't work in tax years and will want to know how much DP is earning each week/month. Some weeks he'll be the primary income earner and some weeks he won't!!!!

[purpleroses]

I'm pretty sure that tax credits don't currently have any way of knowing how much either of you earn over anything less than a year so presume that's what they'll use. But when me and my ex were claiming they never swopped around who they paid it to mid year- and that was with me earning more and my ex in and out of low paid work. Or do the CSA count it as the income of the lower paid worker regardless of who it's paid to?

[NotaDisneyMum]

CSA will assess it as income of the NRP if they are the HIGHER income earner - and that's the problem, we don't know if DP will he or not!
According to HMRC he won't be the primary income earner during this tax year but might be if the same periods are compared !

[elliebellys]

Nadm,if csa query it just send award notice to them,they might work out on averages,the worst case for you is if they count your dp as main earner,but my guess is they will count the half..are you puttin anythin aside at the mo,cos no doubt csa will come at you with arrears.

[elliebellys]

Have you used the online calculator at all.?

[NotaDisneyMum]

ellie problem is, we don't know whether to put the WTC into the CSA online calculator or not!

[elliebellys]

Do it withwtc,then without,you can use it a few times,its anonymous ,that way you will get rough ideas.

[NotaDisneyMum]

ellie It's not the amount we want to know - its understanding how the system works, so when DP talks to the CSA he can do so in an informed way.

They are renowned for telling people the wrong thing - DP nearly lost his all redundancy pay because of misinformation from the CSA!

[elliebellys]

Yep they certainly misinform..nd they will try their best in gettin as much as poss out of ya.

[elliebellys]

I know this might be a stupid question but would his ex accept an offer from you without csa,cos very shortly shed have to have a mutual agreement anyway