Do you think the government should raise the threshold for child benefit?

[nancydroo]

My understanding is if one person in the household earns £60k the household are not entitled to claim child benefit. If they earn £50k or more they get taxed on it but still get to claim it. However, if the combined household income is higher than this threshold but shared over a couple they can still claim child benefit. Do you think the government should raise this threshold? Are you nearing the threshold but going to miss the child benefit as income?

I think it should be household income not individual income. It’s shocking that two parents can earn £49k each and claim CB, while a couple who earn £60k and £0 get nothing.

Yep it's totally backwards

I can't understand the reasoning for it

Agree with PP, should be based on total household income- I just miss out as a single parent earning just over whereas couple friends whose combined income is higher than mine still get it. Not fair!

@Raddix yep, totally agree

Is anyone protesting about this? Perhaps we should

It's a lot of money to miss out on

Surely it’s about individual taxation which I would strongly defend

Yes it should definitely be based on household income. I can't see how the current rules are fair!

Doesn't the administration system cost more than the money "saved" by the government

Agree with all of you household income not separate. More shocking than this though to me is the CMS system. It’s such a slap in the face to women (and their children). I can’t understand why it’s not improved & why people aren’t absolutely raging about the crapness of it x

It may be better to raise the threshold but as a whole household amount as opposed to separately. I was a SAHM and my DH was on 70k so we couldn’t claim. Our friends whose combined household income was 95k were entitled. In fairness, neither of us needed it but it’s still illogical.

Absolutely, it's insane that it's not household income and solely on one person.
Especially when you consider financial abuse can happen. This could be the one only source of income for some people.

Yeah it makes no sense

Dh and I earned 49-50k each for years still qualified
Best mate is a sahm 3 kids dh earns 60k and they don't get it?

Totally agree

Terrible

This.

Because it mainly happens to women and not men?

In my experience (no idea of overall statistics) when one is a high earner the spouse tends to work part time or not work at all. Whereas a couple both earning under the threshold tend to both need to work full time and so need more childcare. That’s my guess anyway.

It should be combined total household income rather than individual but, after making that change, the threshold should be lowered. It doesn't need to be anywhere near as high as £120k as a household before child benefit stops.

I'm recently a single parent - earn £65k - 3 children - don't get a penny in child benefit

My sibling - both earn just over £50k but through various accounting tools do get paid it

It's grossly unfair

That's an interesting point. I had not thought of that....but would still argue for it to be across the household

No.
Unless a single parent.

A single income over 60k with non-working or low income partner doesn't need help with childcare.

2 full time working parents earning 60k joint do.

Child benefit is for child related expenses not the general family pot. (In theory - I know that isn't how it work with real life family finances)

Regardless of the fairness of the current system (which I understand is how it is because it’s too complicated/expensive to base it on household income) I do think the threshold should move up. I’m sure it’s been at £50k since it was first scrapped about 12 years ago. With the cost of living increasing it does seem fair it should move up a bit.

This