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There are a number of benefits you may be eligible for if you, or someone you care for, is disabled or has a long-term illness.
Caring for a child can be costly. Child Benefit is a financial payment from the government to help with the costs of raising a child.
This advice applies to: England and Wales
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You are entitled to Child Benefit if you are living in the UK and bringing up a child who is:
There’s no limit to how many children you can claim for, however only one person can get Child Benefit for a child in their care.
Child Benefit gives you:
You can get Child Benefit regardless of your income. However, if you or your partner individually earn more than £60,000 a year, you may have to pay extra tax which would cancel out some or all of the Child Benefit.
The child’s parent can keep claiming child benefit for up to 8 weeks after their child goes to live with someone else. This is as long as the friend or relative does not make a claim. It can continue for longer if the parent makes contributions to the child’s upkeep.
As a kinship carer, if you want to receive the money directly, you will have priority because the child is living with you. If there are competing claims, you may have to wait longer for a decision to be made about your claim.
If your local council is paying towards the child’s accommodation or maintenance, you might not qualify. Contact the Child Benefit Office to find out if you can claim or not.
If you’re responsible for a child who has lost one or both of their parents, you may also be entitled to Guardian’s Allowance.
There are 2 Child Benefit rates:
Any Child Benefit payments you get will count towards the benefit cap. The benefit cap is a limit on the total amount of benefit you can get.
There is more information about payments, should your family spilt up or families join together, on the GOV.UK website.
You can claim Child Benefit 48 hours after you’ve registered the birth of your child, or as soon as a child comes to live with you. You can also claim for up to 3 months of backdated Child Benefit.
It can take up to 16 weeks for a new Child Benefit claim to be processed.
You can apply for Child Benefit online at GOV.UK, or by post by downloading and filling in the Child Benefit Claim form.
When you apply, you will need the following:
Here at Kinship, we offer a range of free support for all kinship carers, including workshops, online advice and information, and support groups.
To find services, information and support in your local area, including information about your local children’s services, use our Kinship Compass tool.
You can also contact the Kinship advice team for free, non-judgmental advice and information if you live in England or Wales.
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