HMRC has confirmed it has started writing to more than one million Tax Credit households who will soon receive the second half of the £650 cost of living payment.
The second instalment is worth £324 and will be sent between November 23 and 30.
Letters to eligible households should arrive between November 14 and 18, HMRC said today.
The second cost of living payment will be sent automatically into the same bank account where you receive Tax Credits - meaning you don’t need to apply for the cash.
It will appear on your bank statement as “HMRC COLS”.
If you haven’t received the second payment, but believe you are eligible, you should contact HMRC by December 7.
Have you received your cost of living payments from the Government? Let us know: mirror.money.saving@mirror.co.uk
Who gets the £324 cost of living payment?
Tax Credit households will receive the cash if they received - or later receive - for any day between August 26, 2022 and September 25, 2022:
-
Payment of Tax Credits for the tax year 2022 to 2023
-
An annual award of at least £26 of tax credits for the tax year 2022 to 2023
If you have a joint claim, where one person receives Working Tax Credit and the other claimant receives Child Tax Credit, payments will be made into the same bank account as the Child Tax Credit.
If you receive Tax Credits and other qualifying benefits, you should receive the £324 from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
The DWP is paying the £324 between November 8 and 23 to households claiming:
- Universal Credit
- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Income Support
- Pension Credit
You might receive your payment later, if you are awarded a qualifying benefit at a later date or you change the account your Tax Credits are paid into.
HMRC - which is using a computer programme to identify eligible households - has warned that receiving a letter doesn’t guarantee you're definitely eligible for a cost of living payment.
You must make sure you meet the eligibility criteria above.
If you received the first half of the £650 cost of living payment (worth £324) it doesn't mean you're automatically entitled to the second half.
For example, your circumstances might have changed and you may no longer be claiming benefits.
