Universal Credit Payment - does this sound right?

[Unicorn457]

I'm after some advice from anyone in a similar position as I have trawled the internet and can't seem to make sense of the info.

Basically, I have recently had my third child (they are 5, 3 and 12 weeks). Prior to this pregnancy I have always worked, full or part time and only every claimed smp and cb.

I am currently claiming maternity allowance as I was self employed for a year before i had the baby.

I have recently put in a claim for universal credit as we are struggling financially and I have been pleasantly surprised. So much so, that I'm worried it isn't right and I'll have to pay it back.

So I am now a SAHM and my husband works full time earning about £32k a year. We have three kids 5 and under. Based on this they are saying I'm entitled to £1200 a month but this is reduced by the amount my maternity allowance is.

Does this sound right?

When my maternity allowance ends, will I then receive the £1200?

Like I say, I have never claimed before and I'm nervous this sounds wrong.

That doesn't sound right to be honest! You aren't claiming childcare costs in that are you (as you can't claim them unless you are both working over 16 hours per week)?

Is it worked out based on how many kids you have? My DH earns a lot less than yours and we are about to have our first baby, and when I tried to see what assistance we would get if I worked part time it was basically nothing.

No that certainly doesn't seem right. Is your rent very high. There are a few benefit calculators on the internet where you can enter your circumstances and earnings and get a guide as to your entitlements.

Rockchick you can claim childcare whilst on maternity.
No op £1200 is not correct.

Absolutely not correct - that sounds like it could possibly be an annual amount?? Why would anyone receive that kind of money with another decent wage coming in - that amount is like another full time salary on top.

Sorry should have asked if you have a high rent?

Thanks for your comments, I didn't think it sounded right. We have a mortgage so shouldn't get any help I don't think?!

£4005 is the annual amount on £30k a year with three dc and £1995 is the annual amount on £32k so you will be in the middle. Call it £3000 roughly and you will receive approx £250 a month.

Before UC you would just have got some child tax credits. With UC the amounts shouldn't be vastly different. The cut off / threshold for tax credits 3 kids and no childcare costs is around £38k so you are quite close to that threshold so would have got a a small amount of tax credits but nothing like the amount quoted.

• sorry annual amount on 35k not 32k.

I think I will call them tomorrow as they are due to pay me £600 this week according to my online account!! And it will soon disappear if I don't move it for safe keeping. The last thing I want is to have to pay it back when it's gone!

I think it's the amount you would get as a family per month with no income deducted i.e. husbands wages.

No carven that would be £1072 a month.

www.gov.uk/universal-credit/what-youll-get

Ooh no. I think that's a mistake. According to the UC site, you should get

Standard allowance £498.89
Eldest child £277.08
4 children 4×£231.67 = 926.68
Total = £1702.65

But, your DH earns 32,000 per year (2666.66/month). He's allowed to earn £397 without penalty, so he is treated as earning £2269.66.

He gets 65p deducted for every £1 earned. So 2269.66 x 0.65 = 1475.28 deducted.

1702.65 - 1475.28 =227.36

That's before you take into account the maternity Allowance.

Oops! I completely misread your OP!! You have 3 children, 5 and under. Not 5 children.

So your total allowance would come down £1239.31, and your deduction is still 1475.28, so I can't see that you're entitled to UC at all, sorry!

That's amazing, thanks so much for working it all out for me Lougle, I'm completely confused by it all. Do they take the earnings as the amount he earns before tax, ni, etc or the take home amount? If it's take home it would be less and I might be entitled to something, maybe.

I spoke to the helpline today and apparently it is the amount based on my husband not earning as his pay hadn't been sent through via HmRC or something so it showed as the whole amount. They are going to recalculate it. I thought it looked way out. Thanks so much for the advice and help.

They use gross income less certain deductions - pensions being the main one. We have 3 children and get the disability enhancement for one of them and my DH earns less than yours and we still get nowhere near £1200 per month - we get less than half of that. Could the payments be so high because it has been backdated and we are so near to the end of the tax year? If that is the case then you need to check what your payments will be after April. And yes - you get No help with mortgage payments as one of you are employed.

Sorry - just read Your update.