This £20 a week increase to working tax credit... Anyone know any more details about it yet?

[SerfNTerf]

As I'm sure that it was meant to be effective from April 6th, but my tax credits online payment schedule for the next 6 weeks isn't showing any increase

As a self employed parent whose income has collapsed it would be useful right now!

Nothing showing on ours either. Been desperately checking everyday, and then thought it would be the 6th April, but nothing.

In fact, it's gone down

Ive submitted a change to our income for the new tax year. Wonder how long that will take!

There are 2 increases - a very small one of around 1/2% which represents the unfreezing of the benefit and is supposed to represent inflation, plus the £20 one, which is pro-rate if you don't get the full amount of WTC. I looked at my bank account hopefully on 6th but then realised that weekly payments are in arrears so it would be next Monday. Just checked again today with the early Bank Holiday payment but still not gone up, except for the very small unfreezing amount. Has anyone had it yet? Getting a bit worried now.

"pro rate" should be "pro-rata"

Just managed to find my WTC schedule on-line and it is showing no increase all the way into June! They'll be getting a call come Tuesday!

My changes were applied yesterday! So that was really quick!

I am now getting full wtc but dont think the extra 20 has been applied yet

I was wondering this. Mine is also showing the same amount a week.

I'm not on full amount (£11 pw) so didn't expect £20 rise however the TC calculator they linked to the email did show a small rise.

What email?

The gov.uk ones. You get them if you subscribe. But you get all the CV emails and so you have to filter out (delete!) any that don't apply to you!

I am self-employed and get working tax credits and child tax credits (I have one child still at school and he is 13). I was getting the full amount of working tax credits previously and last week a payment of around £4 extra a week went into my bank account (this payment is for both the WTC and CTC after the freeze was lifted). My schedule is not showing any extra £20 for the future weeks. Tomorrow's payment has now gone into my bank account and it is about the same amount as last week (a few pence less). If somebody was already getting the maximum amount of working tax credit (one child), are they not eligible for the £20 increase then? Thank you.

I think the people who get full wtc are the ones who will get the full £20. Someone said on here / on another thread that we may not get it until may

I've had an email from the council and my housing benefit has gone up due to being on furlough so that's something at least.

My payment schedule has now vanished so who knows what I'll get or when!

I've realised though that any increase in WTC will just get taken off my housing benefit though. So... No use to me at all after all!

I managed to get through to WTC today (eventually). Although the £20 a week is to date from 6th April, it will take a few weeks for it to be applied. Another employee on web chat mentioned a date of 18th May but the lady on the phone had no date by which it will be done. When it is paid, it will be backdated until 6th April. Of course if you don't get maximum WTC, the £20 will be pro-rata.

@Sophiasky - if you are getting the full amount of WTC, (which I imagine means working 30 hours per week normally) then yes, you should get the full £20. If you look at my post below, you will see they have said it may take a few weeks to process but will be backdated until 6th April.

@Sophiasky Sorry, my post is above not below.

@SerfNTerf My payment schedule has vanished too, which I'm hoping is a sign that it's being updated.

That's terrible that your housing benefit will be reduced because of it though - is it definitely the case?

I assume so, that's usually the case because WTC is counted as income for housing benefit calculations. My tax credits went up due to a disability premium being added when my youngest child got DLA, and my housing benefit was cut by a matching amount the following week! They put it back up when I showed them that disability premiums should be disregarded but I assume a rise in WTC will be counted as income.

I have just a small proportion of my rent paid by the Council and I did call them last week to ask about the extra £20. I was told that they will be ignoring the £20 as income, however, I live in Exeter (Devon), and, of course, different councils might be classing it as income, so it might be best to give them a call to find out. However, I do know that this extra grant for a year does have to put down as income when you do your annual tax credit renewal.

As regards what I said earlier about my payment schedule, not including the extra £20, I did an on-line chat with somebody this morning and was told (like some other people were), that it should be put on by the 18th May. The person that I spoke to wasn't able to tell me though if it would be a lump sum backdated to the 6th April, or, if I would get the money spread (adding on the arrears) over the rest of the year, so I will have to see.

The person I spoke to thought it would be a lump sum but I guess we'll see.

Further to my last post of 15th April, I will be getting the extra £20 a week from next week. I was told by Housing Benefit a few weeks ago, that they had been told to ignore it as income. This morning, I have just received a letter from housing benefit saying that due to my tax credits increasing, I have now been overpaid (I pay most of my housing benefit but get some help) £34.60. They are also reducing my housing benefit entitlement by just under £20 a week, as obviously, they have included the £20 from the Government as income - so basically, nearly all of the £20 has to be paid to the council, when I was told previously that they had been told to ignore it. I will call them on Monday morning to discuss this, but has this happened to anybody else now? Thank you.

Mine has gone up too around £20 per week! I had no idea as Ive earnt more a less the same for the last 4 years.