Ending tax credits
Universal credit is gradually replacing working tax credit and child tax credit as well as some other means-tested benefits. If you have been claiming tax credits and start to claim universal credit in the same tax year, your tax credit award will stop. Your tax credits will also stop if you have been sent a migration notice asking you to claim universal credit by a deadline date and you do not do so.
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Introduction
Tax credits are ending. Our understanding is that existing tax credit claimants will be invited to move to either universal credit or pension credit. For most tax credit claimants, the move to universal credit is expected to be complete by the end of the 2024-2025 tax year.
You cannot claim tax credits and universal credit at the same time. If you are an existing tax credit claimant and you make a claim for universal credit in the same tax year, whether under the formal managed migration exercise or because choose to or need to, your tax credit award will stop and HMRC will finalise your tax credit entitlement for the period between 6 April and the date your tax credits end. This is called in-year finalisation.
HMRC will also use the in-year finalisation process to finalise your award if you receive a migration notice, whether or not you claim universal credit, and also if you receive a tax credits closure notice.
Even though DWP should notify HMRC of your universal credit claim (once they are satisfied of your identity and that you meet the basic conditions for claiming universal credit), you still have an obligation to notify HMRC of any change in circumstances that affects your tax credits award.
Finalisation of tax credit claims
HMRC have introduced a different way of finalising tax credit claims linked to the introduction of universal credit. This is called in-year finalisation and it is different to the usual end of year finalisation processes that most tax credit claimants will be familiar with. In-year finalisation will be used where:
- You make a claim for universal credit in the same tax year as your tax credit claim ended; or
- From 6 April 2024, you received a migration notice advising you that your tax credits were ending and inviting you to claim universal credit..
- From 8 June 2024, you receive a tax credits closure notice.
End of year finalisation process
Normally for tax credit awards, after the tax year ends HMRC send claimants a pack as part of the renewals process. This process does two things – it acts as a claim for the new tax year and it finalises the award for the tax year just ended. Not everyone needs (or wants) to renew their claim but they must still finalise their award for the year that has just ended.
Sometimes, tax credit claims end in the middle of a tax year. This might happen where someone claiming working tax credit only stops working, or a couple claiming tax credits separates. In these cases, nothing happens at the time the award ends. But after the tax year ends, HMRC will send you ‘renewal’ papers but instead of renewing the claim, they are just used to finalise the tax credit claim for the year that has just ended.
In-year finalisation process
For some people, as explained above, HMRC have a separate process called ‘in-year finalisation’. It is slightly different to the usual end of year process because it calculates tax credit entitlement for a part-year and uses part-year income figures. You can read more about how income is calculated on our in-year finalisation page.
As soon as HMRC are notified by DWP that you have claimed universal credit, they will begin the in-year finalisation process by sending you out a review pack. HMRC will also use in-year finalisation where you are sent a migration notice asking you to make a universal credit claim by the deadline date and you do not make the claim. HMRC will terminate your tax credits once the deadline day passes and start the in-year finalisation process. This means HMRC will gather the information and finalise your tax credits award straight away, rather than waiting until after the tax year ends as they do under the usual tax credit processes.
HMRC will use the in-year finalisation process in all cases where universal credit is claimed in the same tax year as a tax credit claim is ended. So even if there is a gap between your tax credits ending and making a UC claim, if it is in the same tax year then HMRC are likely to use the in-year finalisation process.
The in-year review pack
HMRC will send out letters and information packs to claimants who need to finalise in-year. The pack will include a ‘review’ notice setting out the award details that HMRC have on their records which need to be checked. If your award is being auto-finalised, the notice will explain that you don’t need to contact HMRC unless the information is incorrect or out of date. If your award is not being auto-finalised, you will need to complete the declaration to confirm your household circumstances and provide your in-year income figure. If you are self-employed, you may need to estimate your part-year profits.
It is important you complete the declaration by the date given on the pack.
You can read more about how income is calculated on our in-year finalisation page.