|
The Child Maintenance Bonus is a tax-free lump sum of up to £1,000 payable when you move off benefit into work.
You must be receiving child support maintenance and Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance (Income based) to qualify.
The Child maintenance bonus scheme is being phased out and will not be available to parents in the new Child Support Scheme. Parents with care under the old Child Support Rules will continue to accrue entitlement to the bonus and will be able to claim it until transferring to the new arrangements. Child Support Agency will decide whether the Old Rules or New rules apply to you.
The Child Maintenance Bonus scheme allows you to claim a tax-free lump sum of up to £1,000 when you move off benefit into work if you:
- have a dependent child living with you who has a parent living elsewhere; and
- receive child maintenance for that child; or
- there is a child maintenance assessment in place; and
- receive Income Support; or
- receive Jobseeker's Allowance (Income based); and
- are under 60 if the qualifying Benefit is Income Support; or
- are under pension age if the qualifying Benefit is Jobseeker's Allowance (Income based)
The amount of bonus is based on the amount of child maintenance actually paid.
The bonus must be claimed within 28 days of leaving benefit.
You can get a claim form from the office that deals with your Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance claim.
In the case of a couple, it is the person receiving the child maintenance who claims the bonus. This is not necessarily the benefit recipient.
Six-monthly statements will be issued giving an estimate of the bonus amount you may receive if you stop claiming benefit because of work.
Where the maintenance payments were decided by Court Order or by the Child Support Agency, then the amount of Child Maintenance Bonus is either:
- the amount of child maintenance due each week (up to a maximum of £5), multiplied by the number of weeks in the bonus period; or
- the total amount of child maintenance paid during the bonus period,
whichever is less.
The bonus period is the time the parent with care has been on benefit since child maintenance became due or actually began.
Where voluntary maintenance payments are received, the amount of Child Maintenance Bonus is:
- the amount of child maintenance used in working out benefit paid (up to a maximum of £5), multiplied by the number of weeks during the bonus period; or
- the total amount of child maintenance paid during the bonus period,
whichever is less.
As the scheme began on 7 April 1997, no time or payments before that date will be counted for the calculation of the bonus amount.
Rules for child maintenance bonusThe person with care (or partner) must stop claiming Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance (Income based) because of:
- starting full-time or part-time work; or
- increasing the number of hours worked; or
- an increase in earnings; and
the work condition must be satisfied within 14 days of leaving benefit.
Special rules apply in certain instances, e.g. leaving benefit for a short time, retirement, death of the child, etc.
The Child Maintenance Bonus Scheme is being phased out and will not be available to parents in the new Child Support Scheme. Parents with care under the old Child Support Rules will continue to accrue entitlement to the bonus and be able to claim it until transferring to the new arrangements.
|
