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Guide · 2026/27
Child Benefit rates 2026/27
From 6 April 2026, Child Benefit pays £27.05 a week for your eldest or only child and £17.90 a week for each other child. There’s no income limit to claim, and the rates are the same across the UK.
Updated 1 October 2026
How much you get
Child Benefit is worked out weekly and usually paid every 4 weeks. Here’s what a family gets in 2026/27, by number of children:
| Children | A week | Every 4 weeks | A year (52 weeks) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £27.05 | £108.20 | £1,406.60 |
| 2 | £44.95 | £179.80 | £2,337.40 |
| 3 | £62.85 | £251.40 | £3,268.20 |
| 4 | £80.75 | £323.00 | £4,199.00 |
For each child after that, add £17.90 a week. In 2025/26 the rates were £26.05 and £17.25.
Payments go into your bank account, usually every 4 weeks on a Monday or Tuesday. You can ask for weekly payments if you’re a single parent, or if you or your partner get certain benefits, such as Universal Credit.
Who can claim
- You can claim if you’re responsible for a child under 16, or under 20 if they stay in approved education or training.
- You’re responsible for a child if they live with you, or if you pay at least the amount of Child Benefit towards their upkeep.
- Only one person can get Child Benefit for a child. If two people claim, HMRC decides who gets it.
- There’s no income limit. If you or your partner has an income over £60,000, you’ll pay some or all of it back through tax: see the High Income Child Benefit Charge.
Until what age
Child Benefit stops on 31 August on or after your child’s 16th birthday, unless you tell HMRC they’re staying in approved education or training. It can then carry on until they turn 20, as long as they started, enrolled on or were accepted onto the course before they turned 19, and they don’t get Universal Credit themselves.
What counts
Full-time education that isn’t advanced (more than 12 hours a week of supervised study, on average), such as A levels, T levels, the International Baccalaureate, GCSEs, Scottish Highers and NVQs up to level 3, as well as home education and certain unpaid approved training.
What doesn’t count
University degrees, HNCs and HNDs, apprenticeships, and training that’s part of a job.
National Insurance credits
While you’re claiming Child Benefit for a child under 12, you get National Insurance credits automatically, which count towards your State Pension. Claiming also means your child gets their National Insurance number automatically before they turn 16. That’s why it’s worth claiming even if you choose not to be paid because of the tax charge.
How to claim
You can claim online, by phone or by post through GOV.UK, from 48 hours after you’ve registered your baby’s birth, or as soon as a child comes to live with you. A new claim can only be backdated up to 3 months, so it’s best to claim soon.
Check everything your family could get
Child Benefit is often just the start. The calculator checks Universal Credit, free childcare, Tax-Free Childcare and more for your household, and works out the tax charge if it applies.
Start the calculator Or get the iPhone appOfficial sources
- Child Benefit: what you’ll get (GOV.UK)
- Child Benefit: eligibility (GOV.UK)
- Child Benefit for children aged 16 to 19 (GOV.UK)
- When and how Child Benefit is paid (GOV.UK)
More guides
Benefits: UK Child Benefits is an independent calculator. It is not affiliated with GOV.UK, HMRC or the Department for Work and Pensions. This guide explains the rules in general and may not cover every situation; check GOV.UK before you apply.