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Original poster

Benefits calculator - can this be right?

21 replies

damppatchnot · 26/02/2013 00:01

My dh and I are separating

He's on a low income so he won't be able to pay maintenance and I just looked at the direct gov benefit calculator and after putting in my pre tax earnings, child care costs, child benefit, travel costs, council tax and pension it stated I may be entitled to more than 200 weekly of combined working and child tax credits

This cannot be right when I earn 34k and pay 36 a week child care ??

It's going to be tough going it alone without maintenance and anything would help but this must be wrong? I will ring
And check tomorrow but wondering if anyone
experienced the same with calculator ?

OP posts:

RedHelenB · 26/02/2013 07:04

No, that won't be right. I have 3 children & get less than that & pay about the same childcare & earm 1/3 of that/.

sausagesandwich34 · 26/02/2013 07:28

That's wrong, I get that a month and have 2 children and earn just under 25k

TheFallenNinja · 26/02/2013 07:40

How low an income? Even on JSA you pay a minimum amount.

Wowserz129 · 26/02/2013 07:43

He has to pay child maintenance. Even people on job seekers pay it for Christ sake! I don't think that amount sounds right. Best to phone them

sydlexic · 26/02/2013 07:50

Only if you have 11 DC.

ihearsounds · 26/02/2013 07:56

Depends on how many children you have because of the cut offs. Also the calculators are often a bit squiffy this time of the year.

MirandaWest · 26/02/2013 08:03

That doesn't sound right - I earn about £15k and get about £400 a month in CTC and WTC with two children.

gruffalocake · 26/02/2013 08:45

It might be right. Did you earn much less last tax year? My dh earns 28k and we get about 550 every 4 weeks for 2 children with no childcare costs. His tax yr earnings are more like 22k though. Working tax credits is particularly odd in that they seem to pay lots initially and then it tapers off. I know I was certainly shocked at how much tax credits amount to when we first claimed.
Try using entitledto.org and enter all your details accurately and see the whole picture of what you might get. We also get Hb as live in expensive city.

catpark · 26/02/2013 11:14

It doesn't sound right OP. Me and my DH are not entitled to any tax credit working or family. We earn less than £30,000 between us before tax and get nothing. We have 2 children. Gruffalocake are you sure yours is right ?

noisytoys · 26/02/2013 11:21

We earn £23.5k and get £298 child tax every 4 weeks. Yours does seem a little high

lougle · 26/02/2013 11:24

Your travel costs aren't included in any benefit calculation.

carrielou2007 · 26/02/2013 16:25

Wtc is if you are on a low income I think £16 ish k? Then cut offs for help with child are I think are £26k for one child, £32k for 2. However as it is near the e d of the tax year it may be that your award is £200 until then not £200 per week. How many dc do you have? Seems v high amount?

Original poster

damppatchnot · 26/02/2013 17:46

I did it again and still 200

I will ring tomorrow x

I'm on 34k but pay childcare so anything would help

OP posts:

lougle · 26/02/2013 19:05

try the turn2us calculator. The one you've used is almost certainly wrong.

for a start, travel costs are irrelevant.

For comparison, our joint income is £13k, we have 3 children, one if which is severely disabled, so extra tax credits.

We get £260 ish per week, combined tax credits.

Original poster

damppatchnot · 26/02/2013 19:47

35 a week

That's more like it 140 a month

OP posts:

lougle · 26/02/2013 20:21

Is that for the turn2us calculator?

MisForMumNotMaid · 26/02/2013 20:28

Catpark. The cut of for tax credits with two children is £32,200 this year see here [http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/leaflets/wtc2.pdf tax credits]. You might be missing out

MisForMumNotMaid · 26/02/2013 20:28

try again

Original poster

damppatchnot · 26/02/2013 20:40

Yes it was the turn to us calculator

OP posts:

gruffalocake · 26/02/2013 21:12

Catpark. I do worry it is too much but I have used entitled to/turn2us and ring up the second anything changes and tell them. I think it might be because dh salary has increased rapidly from a training salary and so because they work on this tax year system it means we get more than one might think for our salary level in order to even out over the year.
I hope so anyway! I'm not sure what else I can do other than keep checking it is right online and informing them of changes immediately.
Our working tax is going at the end of this tax year but will be replaced by HB from what I understand because of the high cst of living here.

MN044 · 26/02/2013 21:15

They've probably done a calculation based on your earnings this tax year- so you'll be getting a whole years worth in ther several months til April if that makes sense? In April you can expect it to go down massively as it'll be spread over 52 weekly payments rather than just a few.

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