Families who receive Tax Credits have started to receive their first £301 cost of living payment on Tuesday morning.
HMRC has confirmed that the money, which is the first instalment of the £900 support package announced by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt during November’s Autumn Statement, started to arrive in people's bank accounts today as planned and the end date for everyone to have received their money is next Tuesday, May 9. Over one million households who currently receive Tax Credits, and no other means-tested benefits will get the payment, with the second and third instalments due later this year and early next.
Payments will be made automatically, so there’s no need to apply. The payment will show as ‘HMRC COLS’ in bank and building society accounts and will be paid into the same account as your Tax Credits. If you have a joint claim, where one person receives Working Tax Credit and the other receives Child Tax Credit, payments will be made into the same bank account as the Child Tax Credit.
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Angela MacDonald, HMRC’s deputy chief executive and second permanent secretary, added: “The £301 cost of living payment will deliver vital financial help to eligible Tax Credit customers across the UK. Further support will be paid in Autumn 2023 and Spring 2024 to those entitled to payment."
The payment date for families claiming Tax Credits - one of the so-called legacy benefits - comes a week after the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) started to pay the £301 payment to more than eight million people who claim means-tested benefits, such as Universal Credit. The DWP has said that the last date for their payments is May 17, although most people are expected to have received their money well before then.
More than nine million people in the UK received the £650 cost of living payment last year, but this year the payment has been increased to £900 and will be split into three payments of £301, £300 and £299. There will also be a separate £150 for over six million disabled people nationwide and £300 for another eight million pensioners on top of their Winter Fuel Payments to help them meet their energy bills coming later this year.
The Government has refused to release exact dates when the second and third payments will hit people's bank accounts, just Autumn 2023 and Spring 2024. But as it has already stated that payments will all be made in the 2023/2024 financial year, the last sum should be paid before April 5, 2024.
To be eligible for the payment, you need to have been entitled to a payment for one of these benefits between 26 January and 25 February 2023, or payment for an assessment period ending between these dates:
- Universal Credit
- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Income Support
- Working Tax Credit
- Child Tax Credit
- Pension Credit
A HMRC spokesperson said: "If tax credit customers believe they are eligible but do not receive a £301 payment between the published payment dates, they should wait until 16 May to contact HMRC. This is to allow time for their bank, building society or credit union to process the payment. Receiving a previous Cost of Living Payment does not guarantee customers will receive a future one. Customers must meet the individual eligibility criteria for each payment."
Both HMRC and the DWP have warned people to be on their guard against fraudsters asking people to make a claim for any cost of living payment. The £301 payments from both the DWP and HMRC will be sent out automatically to the account used by claimants for their qualifying benefit, which means nobody needs to apply for the financial support - if you receive a text, email or phone call asking you to make a claim for any cost of living payment, it is a scam.
Now read:
- Month-by-month guide to when you can expect all of this year's cost of living payments
- DWP benefits could be slashed as energy bill repayments freeze comes to an end
Expert's tips on how to make £301 cost of living payment go further
- Universal Credit: What the announcements in the Budget mean for you if you claim benefits
- DWP warning to millions of benefit claimants who could be slapped with £50 fines
