Tax credits & benefits for people in work or looking for work

A question about : Tax credits & benefits for people in work or looking for work

This thread is for people who are in work or looking for work, and looking for help about the benefits that they may be able to get. It doesn’t matter if you’re working for an employer or are self-employed, you may still be able to get benefits or tax credits and boost your income.

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Best answers:

• Hello. I will start off. I want to do some contracted in work on a SE basis. I am wondering whether to go 16 hrs + tax credit (I have severe disability and work will be from bed) or to do permitted work.
  I am currently receiving the old SDA + IS. Husband receives CA which is deducted off the IS, as is the SDA.
  What I want to know is what are the linking rules? If I decided to go down the tax credits route and could not manage the hours, as SDA is an old severe disablement benefit I am unsure if it comes under linking rules.
  If not, what are the current IS linking rules to go gack on the same benefits if things don't work out?
  Additionally for my first year do I just put CA as income in the WTC form as it is based on the previous year? Will this not create an overpayment the year after? (Income won't be more than 10k more than CA)
  Thanks in advance.
• I shall go 2nd.
  I've recently started a job working term-time in a school - it is no more than 10 hours per week on average.
  My full-time Uni student 'status' ends next week - I was in receipt of student grant and loan until my last payment in April.
  My husband was promised a new job which has not materialised and so needs to claim JSA - it will be income-assessed as he hasn't paid enough NI.
  My questions are:
  1. do we need to claim as a couple as I work less than 16 hours per week?
  2. or can he just claim on his own but declare I'm working?
  3. in either case would we still be entitled to housing benefit and council tax benefit?
  We currently receive Child Tax Credits and Child Benefits for our 2 children (11 and 14), and no maintenance from their biological father (whereabouts unknown).
  I'm asking because I keep getting conflicting information from the Job Centre - I'm either told that he can claim on his own or that it has to be a joint claim due to me working less than 16 hours.
  Many thanks in advance.
• Dear Madam,
  Thank you for your enquiry. Whether or not the ‘linking rules’ apply to you will be dependant upon when you first made the claim for severe disablement allowance (SDA).
  You can only get SDA now if:
  a) you were getting SDA before Januray 2011 and there has been no break in your entitlement since that date
  b) you continue to meet the qualifying conditions for SDA
  c) no decision has been made on converting your SDA to Employment and support Allowance.
  (please note that SDA will be phased out so you may be assessed for Employment and Support Allowance between now and 2014)
  You should still be entitled to receive Income Support as long as you work 16 hours or less, depending on your income.
  For further advice please contact the Benefit Enquiry Line 0800 882 200.
  Should you choose to start working, please make the relevant benefit offices aware of the changes to your circumstances.
  According to HMRC, Carers Allowance is a benefit which will count as income, so you may have to include this on your application. For further clarification on this and how other benefits you maybe receiving may be affected, can we refer you to the following link:
  ‘Disability Benefits – How do they affect tax credit payments?’
  https://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/payments-entitlement/other-benefits/a...
  For further advice please contact the HMRC tax credit helpline on 0345 300 3900.
  Thank you
• Dear Madam,
  With reference to your query regarding Job Seekers Allowance, may we refer you to the information available on our website: www.adviceguide.org.uk where you will find a fact sheet on:
  ‘Benefits for people looking for work’ (type in to search engine). The factsheet reads as follows:
  “If you are living with a partner and claiming income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, your partner must either not be working or working less than 24 hours a week. If you or your partner are working 16 hours or more, you may be able to get Working Tax Credit instead”
  For Income Based JSA, you and your partner may need to claim as a ‘couple’ because you both are over the age of 16, married and living in the same household. Your earnings and capital may be counted when assessing how much JSA you maybe entitled to.
  You should still be entitled to Housing benefit and Council tax benefit however, the amount you receive may be dependant upon your personal circumstances.
  If you would like a benefit check to see what you could be entitled to, can we refer you to an organisation that deal with benefit advice ‘Turn2us’ Tel: 0808 802 2000 website: www.turn2us.org.uk.
  Alternatively you can come into your local bureau on a drop in basis. You can find our opening times on www.bcabs.org.uk.
  Thank you
• Thank you very much for the advice.
  Unfortunately I'm still getting conflicting information from the Benefits advice line - grrrr - so I've decided that I'm just going to apply for JSA and leave them to decide.
• Hi,
  I just received my letter today saying I was successful with my job application and will be starting once the CRB and everything has gone through. My new post is a support worker for the council and is part time - work of only 20 hours a week and paid by the hour of Ј6.84. I live at home with my parents as i've just finished university and I dont have any children. Am i entitled to any benefits as I only do Ј136.80 per week which works out at Ј547.20 per month.
  Thanks x
• Dear EmsiWemsi,
  Benefits are usually dependant upon certain factors: age, health issues, income etc. Based on the information you have provided so far, your entitlement to benefits maybe limited.
  In order to check your entitlements, you might wish to visit the ‘Turn2us’ website which provides an online benefit checker:
  https://www.turn2us.org.uk/benefits_search.aspx
  Tel: 0808 802 2000 (Monday – Friday 8am to 8pm)
  Alternatively, you may also come to your local bureau where we can provide you with a benefit check. You can find the opening times of your local bureau on our website:
  https://www.bcabs.org.uk/Get%20Advice.htm
  We hope you find this information useful
  Thank you
• Hello,
  I guess I will start with a little bit of background information. My husband is receiving ESA-income related (support group). He has recently started working and is working 16 hours a week. He is applying to work under the supported permitted work rules so he should be okay to work 16 hours, he is earning only 97.28 a week. I receive Carer's Allowance. He gets DLA, Housing Benefit (LHA), and CTB. We are going to have a baby very soon (she is due in 2 weeks) so we will be entitled to Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit very soon.
  My question is, do tax credits count as income under the supported permitted work rules? Can we claim for Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit without it effecting our ESA and my husband's supported permitted work? Also, does child benefit count as income? I'm concerned that with him only being allowed to earn 97.50 a week, we may stop receiving our ESA if any of these benefits count as income.
  Thank you for your help.
• Dear SandJ
  Thank you for your query.
  In regards to your question relating to your Child Benefit and Child tax Credit these should be disregarded in assessment of your income based E.S.A
  The Working Tax Credit element however may count as income and can be included in any assessment of entitlement.
  For further information on these issues we would refer you to the HMRC website on tax credits and their helpline no 0345 300 3900.
  Regards
  Birmingham C.A.B
• Hi
  I wonder if you can help me please.
  I started 'signing on' at the job centre in February 2012, filled in the forms etc. I was then told that I had not paid enough NI contributions in tax years ending Mar 2010 and Mar 2011 for contribution based JSA. I am currently disputing this and my tribunal is set for Jul 2012. My appeal papers said that I had paid sufficient in y/e 2010 but that I had not paid any NI contributions in y/e 2011. I know that this is patently untrue as I worked (at the same salary as 2010) from Apr-Nov in that tax year.
  My question is, how do I know how much NI I paid in this tax year and how much is needed to be eligible for contribution based JSA? I only have my P45 from my ex-employer showing how much tax I paid. I was told by the HR department that there would be no P60 as I left part way through the tax year.
  I would just like to have any useful information to hand before I attend the tribunal.
  Many thanks in advance!
• Dear Janie23
  Thank you for your query.
  In relation to your question regarding your N.I. contributions you can contact the National Insurance Cointributions Office on 0845 302 1479 or access their website http;//www.hmrc.gov.uk/nic. Their opening times are Monday to Friday 8.00 am to 5.00pm.
  The office may be able to provide information on your N.I. contributions although you may be asked to provide evidence that the number is yours by providing for example a wage slip stating your number.
  They may be able to provide you with a statement identifying any incomplete N.I contribution years and how much you need to pay to make up the amount if you need to make a claim for contribution based benefit. If you have been refused as it appears to be the case on these grounds you can request specific information relating to those periods of time
  In relation to your second query regarding the amount of earnings at which you started to pay Class 1 N.I. contributions and therefore eligible for contribution based JSA. You needed initially to have paid Class 1 N.I. contributtion in at least one of the last two tax years before the year you are claiming the benefit for
  The lower earning threshold details at which you paid Class1 contributions can be found on the following website
  https://www.hmrc.gov.uk/rates/nic.htm
  We understand that you are in the process of appealing the decision of the DWP if you require assistance in this please contact your local Bureau.
  Regards
  Birmingham Citizens Advice Bureau
• Many thanks for your help, much appreciated.
• Hi,
  I have just left the army after 22 years on end of contract and returned to the UK. I am currently on an unpaid work placement to gain the necessary experience to pass my Gas Safe qualification, once this is done, around October, I intend to go self employed. My wife had to give her job up as we were based in Germany, she has written proof from the MOD, and is about to claim contribution based JSA. I submitted a claim but was told at the interveiw I am not entitled as I am not available for paid employment. I understand this but was given no information about any other entitlements. I am in receipt of a pension and received a terminal grant.
  Regards,
• Hi,
  Me and my husband are expecting and both work full time. When we have a baby it is unlikely that I will be able to return to work as we both work shifts so the cost of childcare will be to high. I have completed a calculator on the web though for tax credits we could be entitled to and it took my income into account for last year and thus we went over the treshold. My husband earns 16000 before tax so this is what we have to live off. If I quit my job after maternity leave will it take last years income into account so we will not be entitled to tax credits or will it take my current income which would be zero in to account. I am quite worried at the moment so any help most appreciated, We could get by with tax credits however without we will find it a real struggle although not as bad a having to pay childcare at nearly my wage eeek!
• I'm married, we have 1 child and I have been made redundant. My husband works 37 hours a week and earns just over 19K, would I be entitled to claim Jobseeker's allowance? If so do you have any idea how much I'd get?
  Also:
  When filling in my Tax Credit renewal form, it inferred that if I claimed JSA then the amount of tax credits paid may decrease. Is this correct?
  We only get Child tax credits if that matters at all.
  If it is the case then do you know how much the Tax credit payments are reduced? Is the reduction equal to the payments of JSA, so we'd end up getting the same overall? Or is it just a nominal reduction?
  Thanks
• Hi
  A little confused about my tax credits.... Was single with 1 child claiming tax credits. New partner moved in part way through tax year and tax credits went down due to his income. Should the Tax office have taken his income as from the april (start of tax year but before we were together) or from the actual date he moved in to make a combined income from the new claim? They asked for his income from the april before we made joint claim. Surely this gives us a higher combined income then we had? We have a Ј500+ over payment now. Thank you
• Hi Metalsmurf,
  Thank you for your enquiry.
  As you are currently training on an unpaid basis and as we understand it, if your pension has come into affect, you may fail to meet the eligibility criteria for JSA. However, this is dependant upon the amount of pension and terminal grant you are receiving.
  Housing Benefit and Council Tax benefit may be awarded depending on how much rent you pay, what income you have coming in and where you live. You will need to contact your local authority to apply.
  For further information on your entitlements to other benefits and help with income maximization, you may wish to contact the Royal British Legion (RBL). The RBL assist members of the armed forces, veterans and their families. Tel: 08457 725 725 https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/
  As you mentioned the possibility of self employment, you may also be interested in an organization named ‘Civvy Street’. Civvy Street is a website for serving and former members of the UK Armed services and their dependants. It offers free advice about resettlement into civilian life and work. They may also be able to provide loans and grants from a government funded scheme to help start a business. You can access their website on https://www.civvystreet.org/
  We hope you find this information useful.
  Kind regards,
  Birmingham CAB