Did you know that claiming Child Benefit could mean you get more State Pension? Retirement might be the last thing on your mind when you’re looking after a new baby, but what you do now could have a big impact on your future finances.
Protecting your State Pension
No-one automatically gets the full amount of State Pension when they retire.
You’ll only get the full amount if you’ve paid – or been credited with – National Insurance contributions (NICs) for 35 years. Usually, you’ll build up a year of National Insurance contributions by paying taxes on your wages, but when you claim Child Benefit, you’ll be credited with NICs until your youngest child is 12, even if you’re not earning.
The credits are automatically added to your National Insurance account when you claim Child Benefit – so you don’t need to do anything.
If you reach State Pension age on or after 6 April 2016, you’ll get the new State Pension.
Find out more in our guide The new State Pension explained
The full amount of the new State Pension for the 2024/25 tax year is £221.20 per week.
What is Child Benefit?
Child Benefit is a regular payment from the government to help with the cost of raising a child.
You can claim Child Benefit for each child you’re responsible for if they’re:
- under 16
- under 20 and still in approved full-time education or training.
Find out more at GOV.UK about Child Benefit when your child turns 16Opens in a new window
For the 2024/25 tax year, you could get:
- £25.60 a week for your first child
- £16.95 a week for any more children.
To keep the full amount of Child Benefit, you can’t earn more than £60,000 before tax. If you have a partner, they must also earn less than £60,000. Even if only one of you earns more, you’ll need to repay some or all of your Child Benefit as extra income tax. This is known as the high income Child Benefit charge.
If you earn more than £80,000, you’ll repay the full amount of Child Benefit in extra tax. But you can opt to not receive the payments – and avoid the tax charge – but still get the entitlements.
Find out more in our guide Child Benefit for people earning £60,000+
Use our Benefits calculator
If you’re living on a low income or have had an income shock, use our Benefits calculator to quickly find out what you could be entitled to.
How to claim Child Benefit
Download a claim form (CH2) on GOV.UK Opens in a new window
Even if you don’t think you qualify because either you or your partner earns over the £60,000 tax-free limit – it’s still worth claiming. This is so you don’t miss out on National Insurance credits.
Find out more in our guide How to claim Child Benefit
If you’re a foster carer
If you’re a registered foster carer – you’ll need to apply to HMRC for National Insurance credits.
Download an application form at GOV.UK for National Insurance Credits if you're a parent or carerOpens in a new window
Transferring National Insurance credits
If you’re working and getting Child Benefit – you might be building up more National Insurance credits than you need.
The good news is you can transfer them to your partner if they’re not working or are on a low income and not paying National Insurance contributions.
You can make transfer claims on an annual basis after the end of each tax year.
Download an application form at GOV.UK to transfer National Insurance creditsOpens in a new window
Grandparent credits
You can also transfer National Insurance credits to someone else in your family if they look after your child under the age of 12. For example your:
- sibling
- grandparent, or
- other direct family member.
They don’t need to be registered childminders.
These are known as ‘grandparent credits’.
Download an application form at GOV.UK to claim grandparent creditsOpens in a new window
How to get a State Pension statement
It’s easy to check how many years of National Insurance contributions you have – and how much State Pension these might give you.
You can also work out how many more years – if any – you need to get the full State Pension.
