UK tax credits : conditions to apply for a Working Tax Credit

While the whole tax credit system is to change in the UK in the early spring of 2017, until then the below enlisted conditions and sums will apply. Note that each applicant is handled individually, therefore if they apply for tax credit, the amount will be structured according to several of the below factors. The exact sum of the tax credit is therefore impossible to foretell.

What are the general conditions for applying for a tax credit?

The applicant should be over 24 years old and he/she needs to have a job (full or part-time) with a minimum of 30 hours/ week

The applicant should be over 16 years old and has to be responsible for one or more children, plus he/she has to hold a job with a minimum amount of working hours of 16 hours/ week

The applicant has to be over 50 years old and one who wants to go back to work and can also provide a guarantee or paper about the employment ensuring that it will happen in the matter of 6 months counting from the application.

If the applicant lives with his/her partner in one household and their wake together does not reach a minimum pre-defined amount monthly.

Application Process:

Application can be done either online or on paper and it takes approximately 3-4 weeks to be processed. Application for those applicants who are over 25 years of age can start a maximum of 7 days before they start in a new job. More detailed info can be found on the governmental Tax Credit website.

The current amount of Tax Credit

The maximum sum of the Working Tax Credit is GBP 1960/year. The condition of this is that the candidate’s salary should be below GBP 14.000 per 1 person ( if there is only one applicant) and GBP 19000 when it’s meant for candidates who apply for the tax credit as a couple.

Now let’s get to see all the factors which can affect the upper mentioned value in below list:

The maximum amount of Tax Credits is GBP 1960 per year If the applicant is either living in a couple or he/she is a lone parent
The general amount for one single worker who fulfils the upper mentioned conditions is - GBP 1920/year.
The amount of childcare within Working Tax for one child – GBP 122/ weekly
The amount of childcare within Working Tax for two or more children – GBP 210 / weekly
If the applicant has one or more severe disability - GBP 1190
If the applicant works over 30 working hours / week – GBP 790 / year
The general amount of credit for a disabled worker – 2790 GBP / year
The return to work tax credit for those over 50 yrs. old – 1365 /year

For doing exact calculations, applicants can visit the governmental website which also houses a calculation sheet for what a candidate expect to receive each month. The official hotline on Work Tax Credit helps with any questions a candidate may have.