izharshah.com/tools/high-income-child-benefit-charge · The Parallel Operator · High income child benefit charge · 2026/27 rates and thresholds, checked against GOV.UK 22 September 2026
High income child benefit charge: what you actually pay
It is charged on one person, not on the household, which is why two parents earning £55,000 each pay nothing while a single earner on £70,000 pays a charge. It starts once the higher earner passes £60,000 and takes back everything by £80,000. Enter your income below to see the charge, what it does to your real marginal rate, and how much of a pension contribution would remove it.
This is ONE person, the higher earner. Not the two of you added together.
Send me my full breakdown
Unlock the full breakdown: your charge shown against the whole £60,000 to £80,000 band so you can see where you sit, your true marginal rate on the next pound, exactly what pension contribution would take you under the threshold, and what it is worth keeping the claim for even if you pay the charge back in full.
By sending, you agree to receive The Parallel Operator newsletter by email once a week. You can opt out at any time with the link in every email. See the privacy policy.
Your full breakdown
Thank you, you are on the list. Here is your full breakdown.
Where you sit in the band
| Income | Taken back | Charge | Benefit kept |
|---|
How this calculator works
It is one person’s income, not the household’s, and that is the part that catches people. Two parents earning £55,000 each, £110,000 between them, pay nothing at all. One parent earning £70,000 with a partner earning nothing pays a charge. GOV.UK tests the income of the higher earner of the couple against the threshold, and the household total never enters the calculation. There is no version of this where adding the two salaries together gives the right answer.
The taper is one per cent for every £200, and a lot of calculators still use £100. Above £60,000 you pay back 1% of your Child Benefit for each full £200 of income, so the charge reaches 100% at £80,000 and never goes beyond it. The step was per £100 until 5 April 2024, when the threshold moved from £50,000 to £60,000 and the band widened. Anything still stepping per £100 will tell you the charge is twice what it is.
The number that actually matters is your marginal rate, and nobody tells you it. Inside the band you are losing income tax, National Insurance and a slice of Child Benefit on the same pound. For a 40% taxpayer with two children that is around 52% on every extra pound; with three children it is over 57%; with four, higher still. A pay rise that takes you from £60,000 to £80,000 is worth far less than it looks, and this page works out your own figure rather than quoting an average.
Adjusted net income is not your salary, and that is the lever. It is your taxable income after certain deductions, and two of them are within your control: pension contributions and Gift Aid donations, both of which come off at £1.25 for every £1 where basic rate relief has already been added. That means a contribution can pull you back under £60,000 and remove the charge entirely. The calculator works out the exact figure that would do it. Whether that is the right thing to do with your money is a different question and not one a web page can answer.
Claim anyway, even if you will pay all of it back. GOV.UK is clear that registering matters beyond the money: it gives National Insurance credits that count towards your State Pension while you are looking after a child under 12, and it gets the child a National Insurance number automatically. You can claim and then choose not to receive the payments, which keeps the credits and removes the charge at the same time. Opting out of the payments is not the same as never claiming, and the difference can be worth years of State Pension.
Questions people ask about the child benefit charge
What is the high income child benefit charge?
A tax charge that takes back some or all of your Child Benefit once one person in the household has an adjusted net income over £60,000. You pay back 1% of the Child Benefit for every £200 above that, so at £80,000 or more you pay back the whole of it. It is collected through Self Assessment.
Is the child benefit charge based on household income?
No, and this is the most misunderstood part of it. It is based on the income of the higher earner alone. Two parents earning £55,000 each pay nothing, even though the household has £110,000 coming in. One parent earning £70,000 with a partner earning nothing does pay the charge. The household total is never used.
How much is the child benefit charge at £70,000?
At £70,000 you are £10,000 over the threshold, which at 1% per £200 is 50% of your Child Benefit. With two children, where the full year is about £2,382, the charge is roughly £1,191 and you keep the other half. The exact figure depends on how many children you claim for.
At what income do you lose all your child benefit?
£80,000. The charge rises by 1% for every £200 above £60,000, so it reaches 100% exactly £20,000 above the threshold. It never goes above 100%, so earning more than £80,000 does not cost you more than the Child Benefit itself.
Can pension contributions avoid the child benefit charge?
They can reduce or remove it, because the charge is worked out on adjusted net income rather than salary, and pension contributions come off that figure. Where basic rate relief has already been added, each £1 you pay in takes £1.25 off. Gift Aid donations work the same way. This calculator shows the exact contribution that would bring you under £60,000, though whether it is the right use of your money is a decision for you.
Should I still claim child benefit if I have to pay it back?
Usually yes, and you can claim without taking the payments. Registering gives you National Insurance credits towards your State Pension while you care for a child under 12, and the child gets a National Insurance number automatically at 16. If you opt out of receiving the money you keep those benefits and there is no charge to pay.
How is the child benefit charge paid?
Through Self Assessment. If you are liable you need to register for a tax return, even if all your other income is taxed through PAYE. HMRC has been adding a route to pay it through your tax code instead, so check your current options before assuming you must file.
How much is child benefit in 2026/27?
£27.05 a week for the eldest or only child and £17.90 a week for each additional child, with no limit on the number of children. Note that 2026/27 contains 53 Child Benefit weeks rather than the usual 52, because both 6 April 2026 and 5 April 2027 fall on a Monday, so a full year comes to £1,433.65 for the eldest child and £948.70 for each additional one.
Related tools
General information and arithmetic, not tax or financial advice. The charge is worked out on adjusted net income, which is not the same as salary and depends on your full circumstances, including other income, pension arrangements and Gift Aid. Whether a pension contribution is right for you is a decision for you and, if you need one, a qualified adviser. HMRC is the authority on your own position.
More free UK money tools: izharshah.com/tools · The weekly newsletter: izharshah.com/subscribe · Questions: izharshah.com/contact
