Child Benefit Calculator UK 2026/27

The Child Benefit Calculator estimates the weekly and annual Child Benefit available for a family and, where relevant, the High Income Child Benefit Charge based on adjusted net income.

For 2026/27, the weekly rate is £27.05 for the eldest or only eligible child and £17.90 for each additional eligible child. The tax charge can recover some or all of the benefit where the higher-income partner’s adjusted net income is over £60,000.

The result is illustrative. Actual entitlement depends on the claim period, the children’s eligibility, family changes, payment choices and the adjusted net income of each partner.

How Does the Child Benefit Calculator Work?

The calculator applies the eldest-child and additional-child rates to the number of eligible children, then estimates any High Income Child Benefit Charge from the relevant adjusted net income.

The gross benefit calculation is:

Eldest-child rate + additional-child rates = total weekly Child Benefit

An annual illustration can then be calculated by multiplying the weekly amount by the relevant number of eligible weeks.

Where the higher-income person’s adjusted net income is over £60,000, the calculator may estimate the tax charge at 1% of the Child Benefit received for every £200 of income above £60,000.

At adjusted net income of £80,000 or more, the charge is normally equal to the full Child Benefit amount. Claiming Child Benefit and paying the charge are separate processes.

HMRC publishes the current Child Benefit rates by tax year.

What Are the Child Benefit Rates for 2026/27?

The 2026/27 weekly rate is £27.05 for the eldest or only eligible child and £17.90 for each additional eligible child.

Eligible child	Weekly rate	Illustrative 52-week amount
Eldest or only child	£27.05	£1,406.60
Each additional child	£17.90	£930.80

The annual figures assume entitlement for 52 complete weeks at the 2026/27 rates. A claim beginning or ending during the year will produce a different amount.

Only one eldest-child rate applies within a Child Benefit claim. Every other eligible child normally receives the additional-child rate.

Child Benefit does not use the two-child limit that affects certain other benefits. Each eligible child can be included, although only one receives the higher weekly rate.

What Do the Calculator Results Mean?

The results estimate gross Child Benefit, any High Income Child Benefit Charge and the amount remaining after the charge.

Weekly Child Benefit: This is the combined weekly entitlement for the entered number of eligible children.

Annual Child Benefit: This is an illustrative total for the selected claim period. It may differ from cash received where eligibility starts or ends during the year.

Charge percentage: This estimates the proportion of Child Benefit recoverable through the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

Estimated tax charge: This is the amount the responsible higher-income person may need to pay through PAYE or Self Assessment.

Benefit after the charge: This is the gross Child Benefit less the estimated tax charge. The charge is tax rather than a direct reduction to each Child Benefit payment.

The result does not confirm eligibility, make a claim or update an existing Child Benefit award.

What Is an Illustrative Child Benefit Calculation?

This illustrative example shows the 2026/27 benefit and tax charge for two eligible children where adjusted net income is £70,000.

Illustrative example: A family has two eligible children throughout 2026/27. The higher-income partner has adjusted net income of £70,000, while the other partner’s adjusted net income is lower.

The example assumes entitlement for 52 complete weeks, no claim interruption, the family receives all payments, the children remain eligible, £70,000 is the correctly calculated adjusted net income and no later adjustment changes the figures.

Calculation	Illustrative working	Amount
Eldest child	£27.05 × 52	£1,406.60
Second child	£17.90 × 52	£930.80
Gross annual Child Benefit	£1,406.60 + £930.80	£2,337.40
Income above the threshold	£70,000 − £60,000	£10,000
Charge percentage	£10,000 ÷ £200 × 1%	50%
Estimated tax charge	£2,337.40 × 50%	£1,168.70
Illustrative amount after charge	£2,337.40 − £1,168.70	£1,168.70

Based on these assumptions, the family receives £2,337.40 of gross Child Benefit and the higher-income partner has an estimated charge of £1,168.70.

The family’s effective benefit after the charge is therefore £1,168.70, although the Child Benefit payments and tax charge may occur through different systems and at different times.

Who Can Claim Child Benefit?

A person responsible for bringing up an eligible child can normally claim, but only one person can receive Child Benefit for the same child.

A person may be responsible for a child where the child lives with them or they contribute at least the amount of Child Benefit towards the child’s upkeep.

Child Benefit can normally be claimed for:

a child under 16; or
a qualifying young person under 20 who remains in approved education or training.

Eligibility can end or change when a young person leaves approved education or training, starts certain paid work, begins an apprenticeship or receives qualifying benefits in their own right.

Where more than one person claims for the same child, HMRC applies priority rules to decide who is entitled. The calculator cannot resolve competing claims.

What Is the High Income Child Benefit Charge?

The High Income Child Benefit Charge recovers part or all of Child Benefit when the relevant higher-income person’s adjusted net income exceeds £60,000.

For tax years from 2024/25 to 2026/27:

no charge normally applies at adjusted net income of £60,000 or less;
the charge begins when adjusted net income is over £60,000;
1% of Child Benefit is charged for every £200 above £60,000; and
the charge normally equals the full benefit at £80,000 or more.

Adjusted net income	Illustrative charge percentage
£60,000 or less	0%
£62,000	10%
£65,000	25%
£70,000	50%
£75,000	75%
£80,000 or more	100%

The charge is limited to the Child Benefit received or treated as received for the relevant period. It is not an additional percentage of the person’s entire income.

Historical calculations require the thresholds and taper applying in the relevant tax year. Up to and including 2023/24, the charge generally operated between £50,000 and £60,000 at 1% for every £100 above the lower threshold.

Whose Income Is Used for the Tax Charge?

The charge is normally paid by the partner with the higher adjusted net income where that income is over £60,000.

The calculation does not combine both partners’ incomes into a household total. Each person’s adjusted net income is considered separately.

For example, a couple with adjusted net incomes of £59,000 each would not normally face the charge, even though their combined income is £118,000.

By contrast, a couple with incomes of £70,000 and £20,000 may face a 50% charge based on the £70,000 adjusted net income.

The liable person may not be the person who receives the Child Benefit payments. A partner can be responsible for the charge where their adjusted net income is higher.

For this purpose, a partner can include a spouse, civil partner or person with whom the claimant lives as if married or in a civil partnership, provided they are not permanently separated.

What Is Adjusted Net Income?

Adjusted net income is broadly total taxable income before Personal Allowances, reduced by certain reliefs such as qualifying pension contributions and Gift Aid.

Potential income sources include:

employment income and taxable benefits;
self-employed profits;
pension income;
taxable state benefits;
property income;
savings interest;
dividends; and
certain foreign income.

Adjusted net income is not necessarily the salary shown on a payslip or the cash received during the year.

Qualifying gross pension contributions and grossed-up Gift Aid donations can reduce adjusted net income. Other deductions and reliefs may also be relevant depending on the circumstances.

For a relief-at-source pension contribution, the gross amount includes the basic-rate relief added by the pension provider. A personal payment of £4,000 would normally represent a £5,000 gross contribution.

GOV.UK provides a detailed guide to calculating adjusted net income.

Can Pension Contributions Reduce the Charge?

Qualifying pension contributions can reduce adjusted net income and may therefore reduce the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

For example, a person with income of £65,000 who makes a qualifying £5,000 gross personal pension contribution may reduce adjusted net income to £60,000, subject to the full calculation.

This could remove the charge where no other adjustment or taxable income changes the result.

The contribution amount used must reflect the pension’s tax-relief method. Salary sacrifice, net pay and relief-at-source arrangements affect taxable income or adjusted net income differently.

Pension contributions should not be made solely on the basis of a Child Benefit estimate. Affordability, access restrictions, annual allowance rules and the person’s wider retirement planning remain relevant.

Can Gift Aid Reduce the Charge?

Qualifying Gift Aid donations reduce adjusted net income by their grossed-up value and may lower the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

A £800 Gift Aid donation normally represents a £1,000 gross donation after accounting for basic-rate relief.

If adjusted net income before the donation is £61,000, the £1,000 gross deduction may reduce it to £60,000, subject to the full calculation and eligibility of the donation.

Keep evidence of donations and ensure the Gift Aid declaration is valid. The donor must have paid sufficient UK Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax to cover the tax reclaimed by charities.

Can Someone Claim but Stop Receiving Payments?

A person can maintain a Child Benefit claim while opting out of payments, which can preserve certain advantages without generating an equivalent ongoing tax charge.

Claiming while opting out can be important because the claimant may:

receive National Insurance credits where eligible;
help protect their State Pension record;
ensure the child is normally issued a National Insurance number automatically; and
restart payments if circumstances change.

National Insurance credits can be particularly relevant where the claimant is not working or does not earn enough to build a qualifying year and is responsible for a child under 12.

Opting out does not erase a charge relating to payments already received earlier in the tax year. The responsible person may still need to report and pay the charge for that period.

Families should consider which person makes the claim. Credits belong to the claimant and may be transferable only in certain circumstances.

How Is the High Income Child Benefit Charge Paid?

The charge can be collected through PAYE where HMRC permits or reported and paid through Self Assessment.

The responsible person should ensure HMRC receives the information needed to calculate and collect the charge.

Self Assessment may be required where the charge is not being collected through PAYE or another reporting obligation already requires a tax return.

Child Benefit itself is not deducted from salary. The charge is an Income Tax liability calculated separately from the benefit payments.

A person whose income changes during the year should review the eventual adjusted net income rather than relying only on an initial salary estimate.

How Often Is Child Benefit Paid?

Child Benefit is normally paid every four weeks, although some claimants can receive weekly payments.

A four-week payment contains four times the weekly entitlement. For two eligible children at the 2026/27 rates, the normal four-week amount is:

(£27.05 + £17.90) × 4 = £179.80

Payment dates can change around bank holidays. The annual calculator result should not be divided into 12 equal monthly amounts because four-weekly payments create 13 payment periods in a typical 52-week year.

The actual amount received in a tax year can differ from a simple annual rate where the claim starts, stops or changes partway through a payment cycle.

Can Child Benefit Be Backdated?

A new Child Benefit claim can normally be backdated by up to three months, subject to eligibility during the backdated period.

Backdating cannot usually extend indefinitely to the child’s birth where the claim is made more than three months later.

A claimant should therefore apply promptly even if they intend to opt out of receiving payments because of the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

Backdated amounts can affect the benefit and tax charge for the relevant tax year. The calculator may not reproduce HMRC’s allocation where a payment covers entitlement across tax-year boundaries.

What Happens When a Child Turns 16?

Child Benefit can continue after age 16 where the young person remains in approved education or training and the claimant confirms the relevant circumstances.

Approved education can include certain full-time, non-advanced courses. Approved unpaid training may also qualify.

Entitlement may end where the young person:

leaves approved education or training;
starts certain paid employment;
begins an apprenticeship;
receives certain benefits in their own right; or
reaches the maximum qualifying age.

HMRC may contact the claimant before the child turns 16. Failure to confirm continued education or training can cause payments to stop.

What Changes Must Be Reported?

Changes affecting the claimant, child, household or payment choice should be reported promptly to avoid overpayments or missed entitlement.

Relevant changes can include:

a child leaving the household;
a young person leaving approved education or training;
the claimant or child moving abroad;
parents separating or forming a new partnership;
another person becoming primarily responsible for the child;
the claimant’s bank details changing;
the child starting certain work or benefits; and
the claimant choosing to stop or restart payments.

An income increase does not normally end the underlying Child Benefit claim. It can instead create or increase the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

Review both partners’ adjusted net incomes after a household change, as responsibility for the charge may shift during the tax year.

What Factors Can Affect the Calculator Result?

The number of eligible children, claim period, family structure, adjusted net income and payment choice can all change the result.

Number of children: One child receives the eldest-child rate and each additional child receives the lower rate.
Eligible weeks: A part-year claim produces less than a 52-week illustration.
Child’s age: Entitlement usually changes at 16 unless approved education or training continues.
Adjusted net income: The charge is based on the higher individual amount rather than combined household income.
Pension contributions: Qualifying contributions can reduce adjusted net income.
Gift Aid: Qualifying grossed-up donations can affect the threshold calculation.
Taxable benefits: Benefits such as a company car can increase adjusted net income.
Savings and dividends: These can count even where no additional tax is payable because of an allowance.
Relationship changes: Forming or ending a partnership can change who is responsible for the charge.
Opting out: Stopping payments affects the amount potentially subject to the charge but not necessarily the underlying claim.

The calculator applies the figures entered but cannot verify eligibility, relationship dates or the final adjusted net income calculation.

What Common Child Benefit Calculation Mistakes Should Be Avoided?

Common mistakes include using household income, excluding taxable benefits and assuming a high-income family should not make a claim.

Adding both partners’ incomes together

The charge is based on the higher individual adjusted net income, not combined household income.

Calculate adjusted net income separately for each partner.

Using salary instead of adjusted net income

Salary alone may omit taxable benefits, savings, dividends, property income and reliefs.

Complete the adjusted net income calculation before applying the charge percentage.

Applying the old £50,000 threshold

The starting threshold is £60,000 for tax years from 2024/25 to 2026/27.

Use historical thresholds only for earlier tax years.

Applying the charge to income

The percentage applies to Child Benefit received, not to the person’s whole income.

Income above £60,000 determines the recovery percentage.

Ignoring the claimant’s National Insurance record

Opting out of payments can be preferable to abandoning the claim entirely.

A claim can protect National Insurance credits and support automatic allocation of a National Insurance number to the child.

Using 12 equal monthly payments

Child Benefit is normally paid every four weeks rather than monthly.

Use weekly entitlement or actual payment records when reviewing the tax year.

Assuming the recipient pays the charge

The higher-income partner is normally responsible, even if the other person receives the payments.

Review both partners’ income and relationship periods.

What Are the Calculator’s Important Limitations?

The calculator estimates rates and the standard income charge but cannot confirm entitlement, payment history or every family change.

The result may differ where:

the claim covers only part of the tax year;
a child’s eligibility changes;
payments are backdated;
the claimant opts out or restarts payments;
partners form or separate during the year;
another person claims for the same child;
adjusted net income changes after the estimate;
pension or Gift Aid figures are amended;
historic tax-year rules apply;
benefit was overpaid or underpaid; or
the family has cross-border circumstances.

The calculator does not submit a Child Benefit claim, opt a claimant out of payments, amend PAYE, file a Self Assessment return or determine whether education or training is approved.

Which Related Calculators May Be Useful?

Related calculators can help assess income tax and other childcare support alongside Child Benefit.

The Income Tax Calculator can provide a broader estimate of Income Tax and National Insurance, although adjusted net income must still be calculated separately for the High Income Child Benefit Charge.

The Tax-Free Childcare Calculator can estimate government top-ups for eligible childcare costs. Tax-Free Childcare has separate eligibility conditions and is not part of Child Benefit.

Self-employed parents can use the Self-Employed Tax Calculator to estimate tax on business profit before completing the adjusted net income calculation.

This Child Benefit Calculator provides estimates only. Actual entitlement and the High Income Child Benefit Charge depend on eligible children, claim dates, payments received, adjusted net income, reliefs and family circumstances. Rates and rules can change, individual circumstances differ, and professional tax or benefits advice may be appropriate where income, relationships or eligibility change during the year.

Child Benefit Calculator UK

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