News

From August 2025 employed taxpayers will no longer be required to complete a Self Assessment tax return to declare and pay the high-income child benefit charge (HICBC)

The HICBC is a tax charge paid by the higher earning parent which claws back up to 100% of the child benefit claimed by either parent. For the tax year 2024-25 the HICBC is payable at 1% for every £200 of adjusted net income between £60,000 and £80,000 when the charge reaches 100% of the child benefit received.

Currently, even where the higher earner receives all of their income from employment, they need to complete a Self Assessment tax return in order to declare and pay the HICBC. The Government has confirmed that it will no longer be necessary to complete a Self Assessment tax return purely for the purposes of the HICBC. Those individuals with no other income outside their PAYE earnings will instead need to use a new online service to report their family's child benefit payments and opt to have the HICBC collected from their payslip.

Taxpayers with income from other sources such as property or self-employment income will still be required to file a Self Assessment Tax Return.