Tax credits shock

[Squidpinky]

I am trying to work out whether I am being or have been thick or whether the system is so wrong?!

We have been on the old system of tax credits (paid weekly based on your annual income) for about 7 years now. Our income has hardly changed but this year it has.

My husband was made redundant shortly after lockdown and as the highest earner we took a massive cut. I then had to up my hours at my job to full time to become the main earner. My husband was out of work for a while then landed a job which is way more money than he was on before. Tidy I thought - we would no longer need tax credits as our annual income was above the threshold (both full time) Kids are both now at school so thought we would be better off.

I phoned the tax office to tell them about my husbands new job and our new annual income. I was told that we would probably owe the tax office thousands because of this as we had been paid up until now (April 2020 - October 2020 on our old income which was right up until my husband got this new job)

Firstly I am flabbergasted that we owe the tax office thousands when it was un unplanned changed - We didnt know back in April that my husband would lose his job, I would have to go full time and then he would get a better paid job. The tax credits that we were paid meant we could afford to live on our low income but now we dont need tax credits I can completely understand them stopping our payment but why an earth make us pay back April - October?!

I have worked out that if we have to pay them back a sum each month we wont have much left over at the end of the month and would actually have been better off with me being part time and my husband working on his old wage.

Am I missing something here? Am I really entitled to pay back April - October or if you write and explain the situation do they take a view on it? Anyone else experienced similar?

[GypsyWanderer]

Hi Op, just wondering how you got on and if you had to pay back as much as you thought?

sorry for reanimation of the zombie thread!