5. Child benefit
Child benefit is paid to people who are responsible for a child or ‘qualifying young person’. Child benefit is paid for each child for whom you are responsible, with a higher amount paid for the eldest child. You do not have to be the child’s parent to get child benefit for her/him. Child benefit is not means tested and so is not affected by any income or savings you have. In certain situations, child benefit is not payable for a child, even though you are caring for her/him. See the chapter relevant to your circumstances for more details. You do not have to have paid any national insurance contributions to get child benefit.
If you or your partner has an annual income of over £50,000, any child benefit you or your partner receive may be withdrawn through additional income tax. This is called the high-income child benefit charge. You can elect not to be paid child benefit if this applies to you.1See HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is responsible for the administration of child benefit.