When I filled in my 02/03 self assessment form last year, there was a section for child tax credit. Having a new born baby, I duly filled in the section for child tax credit. This credit was offset against my income in my subsequent tax statement, which arrived last February.
I am now filling in my 03/04 self assessment. The section for child tax credit isn't in it! Am I too late to claim for child tax credit for 03/04? If not, how do I do it? The IR online claim form seems to only apply to the 04/05 tax year (although it asks for information on
Shouldn't they have written to you as you were already claiming? I think that the end of September was the cutoff for claiming. They were telling late claimers to get there claims in right away. I am confused by your statement that the credit was offset against your income in a subsequent tax statement. I didn't think that ctc affected your income tax. They are in a complete mess. I appealed my ctc notice on the 1 Sept. I gave them a month to acknowlede receipt then lodged a complaint. I have just been informed that they will take 2 months to investigate my complaint that they are not considering my appeal. I can see CTC going the same way as the Child Support Agency.
No. That was the Children's Tax Credit, not the Child Tax Credit. This government introduces and abolishes tax credits more often than some people change their underwear.
The Children's Tax Credit ran from Apr 2001 - Apr 2003 and was claimed via your income tax return/PAYE. Even during its brief two year life, it changed in April
2002 to include a "baby" element.
It was abolished, together with that other NuLab brainstorm, the WFTC, in April
2003.
Both were replaced in Apr 2003 by the Child Tax Credit and the Working Tax Credit. These are claimed together, separately from the income tax system, so they are not mentioned in income tax returns and don't affect PAYE.
They are claimed like means tested benefits (except capital doesn't count), where you have to declare both partners' income on the same form, and I think they can only backdate claims for 3 months. So you may have missed out on last year's tax credits and even some of this year's.
They were supposed to have written to everyone who claimed the old Children's Tax Credit about the new tax credits, if they didn't write to you you may have a case for backdating your claim. Or take it up with your MP, the whole system has been a shambles from start to finish.
# include standard rant about a decent income tax system not needing daft overcomplicated bureaucratic tax credits
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