tax credits/hours

[Emmalou77]

Help! Tax credits want to take away my working tax credits because I have only worked on average 23.96 hours per week and the minimum to get working tax is 24. its my first year of doing my books. I know the tax man wants average hours worked but do tax credits want it this way too as I am now doing a 50 hour week and have been since November!

[Kiddleywinks]

Ok, worked hours for the tax man are different for tax credits.

The allowances from the tax man are based on paid working hours
Tax credits allow you to use hours spent on your business outside of your contracted hours that are unpaid, so things like :
Time spent on paperwork (Lj's, planning, accounts etc),
Meetings with parents outside of working hours
If you spent a Saturday on a childminding stall at your local school fete for example, you would also be allowed to add that into your tax credit hours, but bizarrely not for the tax man calculations.

Would adding your unpaid hours make a difference to you tax credits?

[Emmalou77]

Thanks for this advice it's really appreciated. Can I include time spent on nvq on an evening and courses attended on an evening like sef course and first and?

[Koala]

All time spent on activities in relation to childminding are accountable yes, I think you have probably sold yourself short. :thumbsup:

[Emmalou77]

Thank you again, your a life saver. Is this sort of info listed anywhere?

[Koala]

What? you mean help and advice from WFTC or local government :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

You will be surprised how much work you put into childminding if you kept a tally of your hours - not just the hours you look after children - All the prepping, shopping, training, planning etc.... even being on the forum and getting advice its all part of your job.

Just think if you were working for someone a nursery for example would you expect to be paid for what your doing and if the answer is yes then it's part of your job. :thumbsup:

[Kiddleywinks]

Thank you again, your a life saver. Is this sort of info listed anywhere?

HM Revenue & Customs: How to work out usual working hours for your tax credits claim (http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/start/claiming/income-hours/work-out-hours.htm)

If you're self-employed
Put down the number of hours you normally spend working in your business, either on work billed to the client or related activity, for example:
trips to wholesalers and retailers - I include going to the bank to pay in parents fees
visits to potential clients
time spent on advertising
cleaning the business premises I only allow an hour a day for this personally, but I'm sure I spend the best part of 8 hours a day doing it! :laughing:
cleaning a vehicle used as part of the business, for example a taxi
book-keeping
research work

ANYTHING you spend time on in relation to the running or upkeeping of your business is claimable for tax credits
You're not however able to put unpaid hours towards your claimable allowances for personal tax purposes

[Emmalou77]

This is really helpful thank you, thank you, thank you :-)

[Emmalou77]

I told tax credits less than two weeks ago my earnings for 12/13 along with my my hours which I thought were 22 per week, I then found that I could include training hours that supported child minding so I called them up and they say it cannot be changed now as they cannot back date it more than a month, if only I called with the correct hours in the first place then they wouldn't be cutting my money by half by not giving me working tax credits! So angry I could cry :-(

[jillplum]

Thats awful. I thought it used to be 16 hours you had to work. Has it changed?

[Emmalou77]

Yes your right for a single person but for a couple its 24 hours. My partner is my assistant but because he isn't on the pay roll they cannot take into account the hours he works either.

[supermumy]

Single parents it's 16 hrs
For couples it is 24 hr

[Kiddleywinks]

I told tax credits less than two weeks ago my earnings for 12/13 along with my my hours which I thought were 22 per week, I then found that I could include training hours that supported child minding so I called them up and they say it cannot be changed now as they cannot back date it more than a month, if only I called with the correct hours in the first place then they wouldn't be cutting my money by half by not giving me working tax credits! So angry I could cry :-(

Check your renewal form for the date you must give them your final figures for (SE normally get till end of Jan) and then call them back!
Advise them that you have miscalculated and don't give up till someone accepts your new hours x

[littlemiss60561]

That's annoying. . Its also a shame that they cannot backdate your hours but can happily back date their over payment errors ! Funny that...