How much Child Benefit you lose above £60k — and the pension payment that stops the charge
1% of Child Benefit per full £200 of ANI above £60,000 · full clawback at £80,000
Rates are the official weekly Child Benefit amounts for eldest / each other child.
Salary, bonus, self-employment, rental, dividends, taxable benefits and savings interest — before the personal allowance.
Amount already going into a pension this tax year. Salary sacrifice reduces ANI pound-for-pound.
Enter the amount you actually gave. ANI is reduced by the grossed-up figure (× 1.25).
Used only to check who is the higher earner. HICBC is never based on combined household income.
Your entries are stored in this browser only and restored next time you open the page.
| ANI | Charge % | HICBC | Benefit kept |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjust inputs to see results | |||
The free HICBC calculator estimates how much Child Benefit is clawed back when the higher earner’s adjusted net income is above £60,000, and how large a pension contribution would bring that income back to the threshold so the charge stops. Figures update as you type. No account is required.
Choose the tax year so the weekly Child Benefit rates match HMRC’s published amounts, then enter how many children you claim for. Annual entitlement is the weekly total × 52.
HICBC uses the higher earner’s adjusted net income (ANI), not combined household income and not take-home pay.
minimum of 100 and floor( (ANI − £60,000) ÷ £200 )
HMRC’s own example: ANI of £67,600 is £7,600 over the threshold. £7,600 ÷ £200 = 38, so 38% of Child Benefit is repayable.
If you enter a partner’s taxable income and it is higher than the ANI calculated from your figures, the calculator warns you. The partner with the higher ANI is the one who must pay HICBC. Two people each just under £60,000 pay nothing, even if household income is almost £120,000.
Goal: see the mid-taper charge and the pension that removes it.
Under salary sacrifice a higher-rate taxpayer’s illustrative net cost of that £10,000 is about £5,800 (40% tax + 2% employee NI), and the £10,000 is in the pension.
Goal: understand why the amount you write on a cheque is not the amount ANI falls by.
ANI falls by 125% of what you paid. Higher-rate relief (another 20% of the gross) is claimed on your tax return — it does not change the HICBC arithmetic, only the net cost.
Even when the charge would take back all of the benefit, it is usually still worth making or keeping a Child Benefit claim and ticking the box to stop the payments. That preserves National Insurance credits towards the State Pension for the person who stays at home, and it issues the child a National Insurance number. Opting out of payments avoids the charge; it does not cancel the claim.
If you keep the payments, the higher earner reports HICBC on a Self Assessment return, or HMRC may collect it through PAYE.
Not professional advice: This page is an estimation and educational tool. It is not tax, pension or financial advice. Rules, rates and your own facts can differ. Check GOV.UK or speak to a qualified adviser before acting.
Assumptions: Full-year claim at the selected year’s weekly rates × 52. Charge percentage uses HMRC’s stepped rule (1% per complete £200 over £60,000). Partner income is compared as a simple higher-earner check, not a full second ANI calculation. Existing employer contributions that never enter your taxable pay are already outside ANI — do not deduct them again unless they are salary sacrifice or employee contributions you have entered.
Pension net-cost footnote: The “illustrative net cost” assumes a higher-rate (40%) taxpayer in the rest of the UK, with employee NI at 2% above the Upper Earnings Limit for salary sacrifice. Scottish Income Tax bands and rates differ, so the take-home cost of the same gross contribution can be higher or lower in Scotland. Salary sacrifice also depends on your employer offering it and on scheme rules. Annual allowance (£60,000 for most people, tapered for very high incomes) is not modelled here.
Sources: GOV.UK Child Benefit rates, High Income Child Benefit Charge guidance, and HMRC adjusted net income guidance. Thresholds of £60,000 / £80,000 have applied from 2024/25 onwards.
Please email all suggestions for improvements and any bug reports to: hicbccalc@personalfinances.me, thank you.