ILR approved, can we claim/backdate tax credits?

Hello all,

My wifes ILR was approved, so we are really happy about that. So thank you all for your advice and support! Especially Ks and 24 who is amazing!

WHat I am wondering is I know we are entitled to

• Child Tax Credits
  
  Working tax credits (my wife is employed, I get ESA)
  
  Child benefit

Now, we were told we would be entitled to those three things above, I know I could have claimed the Child Benefit before her ILR, however I am unsure about what to do in terms of the working tax credits and child tax credits as I know she would not have been entitled to some parts of the tax credits before she got her ILR so I am unsure what to do if they try to backdate it and whether she would/we would have been entitled to the CHild Tax Credits before she had her ILR and if not if they try to back date it, which I don't want happen as if they backdate it to before she got her ILR and she gets something which she wasn't entitled to before she got her ILR, well I don't want that to happen. So I don't really know what to do.

Also would it be better to put me down as the main name on the claims?

Hope someone can advise?

Also would it be better to put me down as the main name on the claims?

I'm assuming you are a British citizen or you have ILR too.

The Tax Credits claim must be in both names. You cannot claim to be single when you have a parter as the partner's salary is used in the calculations.

You could have claimed before your wife had ILR. It wouldn't even have mattered if you had got extra WTC for your wife even though she wasn't allowed public funds, as you have a child. For Tax Credits, if you have a child and one person is allowed public funds, then the claim is treated as neither being under immigration control. That seems to be changing when Tax Credits is replaced by Universal Credit. As per the budget, be aware that the Tax Credits benefits are getting reduced from April 2016.

Child Benefit can be in either names as your wife has ILR. You should have claimed this before and just put it in your name as a British citizen is allowed to claim. If your wife is earning enough to pay her National Insurance then you might want to put it in your name if you are worried about the future of your ESA as receiving CB gives a credit for national insurance and therefore state pension. I'm sure you are aware that starting from next year state pensions will only be based and our own contributions.

If your wife is earning 50k+ then this will reduce the CB.  About a 60k salary will stop the Child Benefit unless she can reduce this by paying more into her private pension, or you can choose to take the CB for the NIC credit towards state pension and then your wife will need to self declare to HMRC each year to pay the money part back.

I hope that makes sense.

You can try to make a backdated claim, but it is very unlikely that you will be awarded it in the current climate. There are very few places to get specialist benefits advice now, but you could try to see if your local CAB could guide you through the process.

You can try to make a backdated claim, but it is very unlikely that you will be awarded it in the current climate.

Or ever. Someone I knew didn't know about Tax Credits when they first came in in 2002 as the UK had never any benefits like that before. A year later when she claimed, she was told that not knowing was not a good enough reason for backdating. All you can do is ask.