Between 02 May and 19 June 2024, HMRC are communicating with Tax Credit claimants asking them to renew.
This must be done by 31 July or the payment may be stopped. Some claims will automatically renew and it all depends on the format of the renewal notice:
- If it contains a black stripe, the claim will automatically be renewed
- If it contains a red stripe, the claim will NOT automatically be renewed and action is required
For Bookkeepers
Although payroll professionals and bookkeeepers are not responsible for communicating or helping Tax Credit claimants, it us useful to be aware of HMRC’s communications, in case any queries arise.
Further, Tax Credits are slowly being merged into the Universal Credit system with the ambition that they will be abolished on 05 April 2025. This is known as a migration and claimants will receive a Migration Norice from the Department for Work and Pensions in Great Britain or the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland.
In this regard, there are some important links that bookkeepers should be aware of, as this will require action by the Tax Credit claimant:
The action of migrating to Universal Credit is a claimant responsibility and not the employer. However, the amount of the Universal Credit payment is impacted by the amount of earnings reported on the Full Payment Submission (FPS). So, if we get this information wrong, it may impact the Universal Credit payment which is why we need to be aware of this migration.
