Workers earning £60,000 who are claiming Child Benefit are set to lose money from their payslips following a HMRC change. His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed it is simplifying the way that families will pay their High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC).

If you claim Child Benefit, you must pay the HICBC you – or your partner – earn more than the individual income threshold, which is currently over £60,000 for the 2024/25 tax year. This amount will remain the same in the 2025/26 tax year

 which begins on April 6. The charge is calculated as 1% of the total Child Benefit received for every £100 of income above £60,000. If your income reaches £80,000 then Child Benefit will be fully withdrawn.

Currently, the HICBC is collected by HMRC through Self Assessment, meaning you have to fill out a tax return before the end of each tax year that you claim Child Benefit and submit this to HMRC.

But the Government is changing this process by giving parents the option to pay the charge through PAYE instead.

It means that employed parents who opt to do this will have the charge automatically deducted from their payslips, thereby removing the need to register for Self Assessment. This change is due to begin from summer 2025 through the launch of a new digital service.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), The Treasury wrote: “We are making it simpler for families to pay their High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC).

“From Summer 2025, employed parents will have the option to pay their HICBC through PAYE, removing the need to register for Self Assessment.”

This impending change was then confirmed in a government document published following Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement last week, which states: “High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) – From summer 2025, employed individuals liable to the HICBC will be able to report their family’s Child Benefit payments through a new digital service and opt to pay HICBC directly through PAYE, without the need to register for Self Assessment.”

If you or your partner earn £60,000 or less per year then you can claim the full amount of Child Benefit if the child lives with you, or if you’re paying the same weekly amount as the benefit towards looking after them. Only one parent or carer can claim it so you can decide between yourselves who gets it.

You won’t have to pay the tax charge if your or your partner’s individual ‘adjusted net income’ for the whole of a tax year is below the threshold of £60,000.