For those who can't wait until the beginning of April (I have missed some questions out - I don't know everything 
)...
Q. CogitoErgoSometimes Thu 22-Mar-12 09:05:44
Can someone explain more about the New Buy Scheme that was mentioned. Who would benefit most from it?
The New Buy scheme has been emerging for a while and was announced officially a couple of weeks ago. Briefly the idea is that you will be able to get a mortgage on a new home costing up to £500,000 with only 5% deposit with the government and the housebuilder providing guarantees to the mortgage provider to limit their exposure to the currently normal level of 70-75%. Most of the big housebuilders are participating in the scheme and have more details on their web sites.
Q. heliumballoon Wed 21-Mar-12 19:49:22
Many of the families affected by the withdrawal of CB will have a double hit due to changes to the childcare vouchers system. Has anyone calculated the combined impact?
The Childcare Vouchers scheme changed in April 2011 and does not affect anyone already receiving vouchers at that date (who stays in the same scheme) whereas the CB Tax change comes in January 2013 and there have been other changes in this period that affect Higher Rate taxpayers so I am not sure that there is really a 'double hit' as such.
Q. purpleroses Wed 21-Mar-12 19:41:37
How do the child benefit cuts announced affect separated parents? Neither me nor my kids' dad earn very much, but my partner (not married) earns over £60,000 (whereas my ex's wife does not)
I currently claim CB for my two kids - but could I choose to allow my ex to claim it instead if I wanted? (we share their care, though they spend most nights of the week with me) If I let him claim it, I could ask him to pay some of it to me couldn't I?
The father can only claim CB on this basis if they are living with him, and it sounds like they are actually living with you. However if he "is contributing to the cost of providing for the child ... at a weekly rate not less than the weekly rate of Child Benefit payable in respect of that child" he may be able to claim CB on that alternative basis - so he would need to pay ALL of the CB to you. Contact the CB helpline, although they might be a bit busy for a while and you have until the end of December to sort it out
Q. RemainsOfTheDay Wed 21-Mar-12 19:21:34
DH earns under £50k but this year is projected to get a one off retention bonus this year that will push him over £50k but only for this one year.
Will the new CB terms be based on this years salary or the predicted salary from January next year?
It is based on tax years i.e. 6th April 2012 - 5th April 2013. Bear in mind that this comes in on 7 January 2013 so he will probably have to pay some CB claw back in 2012-2013 and may have to explain to HMRC that it is a one-off payment so his tax code is not permanently adjusted. If he is not currently completing Tax Returns he may fall through the net for pre-notification which means HMRC may not work out that he needs to do one until after his employer submits their end-of-year returns in May 2013, so once his exact earnings are known look for more information if you don't want a nasty surprise next summer.
Q. PrincessPrecious Wed 21-Mar-12 19:14:43
Also DH starting a new job in September 2012 will be earning around 35K - will this change anything for us taxwise?
His salary will be higher so there will be more Tax and National Insurance deducted from his salary (you can calculate the effect here), but there are no 'big' changes until his income hits £42,475.
Q. Jinsei Wed 21-Mar-12 19:11:39
I participate in a salary sacrifice scheme for my pension - is it my nominal salary that determines the child benefit or is it the reduced amount?
The reduced amount.
Q. PanicMode Wed 21-Mar-12 19:00:02
Will we still receive the CB, but the higher rate taxpayer get taxed accordingly? I am a SAHM with a DH earning in excess of the £60k threshold, so we will lose it (which is probably 'fair'), but I am very worried about the HRP protection that we will lose. With 4 DCs living in the SE, with a v large mortgage/food bills etc, we're not rolling in money and I can't afford pension contributions at the moment. Will those SAHPs affected by the change be able to pay to protect their NI contributions whilst not working?
Yes you will still receive CB and you will still get NI credits for the Basic State Pension (which replaced HRP in 2010). More details below.
Q. Lizcat Wed 21-Mar-12 18:37:30
We will not be entitled to Child Benefit do we have to phone and unclaim it?
No, you are still entitled to Child Benefit and all assessment will be done through the higher earner's tax return - more details in another answer below.
Q. Toot Wed 21-Mar-12 17:44:40
Will I get credits towards my old age pension now that my husband is having my child benifit taxed off him? Will I stop getting the benifit or continue getting it and have to pay it back - very confused.
Your NI credits will not be affected, full details below.
Q. OddBoots Wed 21-Mar-12 15:09:53
I know that the personal income tax allowance is going up, how will this change the higher rate threshold?
In 2012/13 the higher rate threshold is maintained at £42,475, the same amount as in 2011/12. However in 2013/14 it is reduced to £41,450. This means that if you are entitled to the normal Personal Allowance and earn £42,475 in 2011/12 you pay £7,000 tax: in 2012/13 £6,874 and in 2013/14 £6,859.
Q. goingtoofast Wed 21-Mar-12 14:52:16
If my DH earns above 60k will I still get NI credits every week?
Yes, see full details below.
How is the new system going to work, will everybody claiming CB have to fill in a tax credit style form every year? If DH gets paid for overtime or eanrs a bonus will I have to call a helpline to delcare it straight away. How can it be cost effective?
No, everyone earning over £50,000 will have to fill in a Self Assessment Tax Return every year. This is done after the end of the year so there will be no need to notify additional income. Most of these people already fill in a tax return but HMRC estimate that an additional 500,000 people may have to submit returns but these are all processed automatically with only a sample selected for manual review which is why it is cost effective. This is also why the system has to be based on a single income rather than combined income - that would have required a completly new system to assess the combined income of a huge number of families that are not already means-tested for Tax Credits (I make it about 2.5 million).
Q. Alibabaandthe40nappies Wed 21-Mar-12 14:50:01
I (and I know many others) are keen to know how HRP, or whatever it is now called, is going to be preserved for people who are losing Child Benefit and who don't earn up to the NI threshold
You will still qualify for Child Benefit but the person that earns the most gets it taken back through their income tax payments. In any case qualifying for the State Basic Pension has not been linked to Child Benefit since April 2010 when the system of NI Credits replaced Home Responsibilities Protection. NI credits are entirely independent of a spouse or partner's earnings and you need to be:
- a parent with a dependent child under 12 years of age
- an approved foster carer
- caring for at least 20 hours per week for one or more severely disabled people
Q. slatternlymother Wed 21-Mar-12 14:38:44
With the personal allowance going up an extra £1,100pa... Is that per person? So DH and I will each be able to earn that extra pa?
A. Yes, taxation of married couples has been separate since 1990.