Martin Lewis says people earning over £60,000 can claim benefit but are 'unaware'

Martin Lewis has moved to urge people earning over £60,000 to claim a HMRC benefit which many are "unaware" of. The BBC Sounds podcast host explained how HMRC Child Benefit can be claimed by higher earners amid the Cost of Living crisis.

ITV star Mr Lewis addressed the hot topic on his Money Show Live, where one family asked: “As a working couple with three young children, should we still claim Child Benefit if one of us earns over £60,000?”

Martin then replied: “Yes, absolutely you should. Last year the thresholds where you start to lose Child Benefit were increased, so now you start to have your Child Benefit decreased at £60,000, the highest earner having £60,000, and you lose it totally with the highest earner earning £80,000.

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"As long as the highest earner is under £80,000, you will be net better off by claiming Child Benefit.” Martin added: “Worth saying even if you’re above £80,000, if one of you isn’t working, they should be claiming Child Benefit at zero rate, ie claiming it but saying don’t give me any, because that’s what triggers your National Insurance credits, which goes towards your state pension.”

He added: “We did have some news buried at the bottom of the Budget documents about this, because if you remember I’ve been campaigning and the system where it’s based on the highest earner’s income is not fair, it should be based on household income, the last chancellor put the thresholds up and it was supposed to be temporarily while they moved to a household income measurement.

"Buried in the Budget, the new government is not going to move it to a household income measurement which in my view is and I’ve written to the Chancellor before the budget about exactly this, is negative for single earner families, single parent families and dominant earner families."

He added: “But it isn’t changing it is going to be stuck on the highest earner’s income which dictates whether you get Child Benefit or not.”