How do I restart Child Benefit payments after opting out for HICBC?

Can I restart without making a new Child Benefit claim?

The GOV.UK restart page is for people who previously opted out because of the tax charge and who still qualify for Child Benefit. Opting out left you registered; it stopped the payment. The make a change page says you can restart the payment at any time.

The older GOV.UK form page says only the person who claimed the Child Benefit should use the restart service. If someone else now wants to be the claimant, that is a different change: contact the Child Benefit Office, then the other person makes a new claim.

GOV.UK: you cannot use the online service or the online form if you are an appointee or authorised agent. Those cases go to the Child Benefit Office by phone or post.

How do I restart Child Benefit payments?

GOV.UK lists three official routes. The HMRC app is a fourth official channel for applying for and managing Child Benefit after you sign in with the same details you use for HMRC online services.

1. 1
   Confirm you still qualify and you were the claimant The restart page is for an existing claim where payments were stopped for the High Income Child Benefit Charge. If the claim has ended for another reason — for example the child no longer qualifies — this restart service is the wrong tool.
2. 2
   Use the online service or online form On GOV.UK, sign in (or create sign-in details) and use the restart service or the online form. Appointees and authorised agents cannot use those digital routes.
3. 3
   Or use the HMRC app The HMRC app page says you can apply for and manage Child Benefit in the app. Sign in with your HMRC online details, then a PIN, fingerprint or facial recognition.
4. 4
   Or phone or write to the Child Benefit Office GOV.UK says you can also restart by phone or post. Use that route if you cannot sign in, or if you are an appointee or authorised agent.
5. 5
   Recheck the charge from the restart date After payments restart, GOV.UK says you or your partner have to pay any tax charge on benefit received from the restart date if adjusted net income is over the threshold. Run the Child Benefit tax calculator before you assume the opt-out years still apply.

How long before the first payment arrives?

GOV.UK says that after the Child Benefit Office gets your request, it can take up to 28 days before the first payment. The office writes to tell you how much is due from backdated payments, if any. Those amounts are set by the Child Benefit Office, not by this page.

Does the charge start again from the restart date?

Yes, it can. The restart page says you or your partner will have to pay any tax charge on the benefit received from the restart date if adjusted net income is over the threshold. For tax years from 2024 to 2025 that threshold is £60,000 of individual adjusted net income; the charge is the full Child Benefit from £80,000.

That is why a restart after the 2024 threshold rise is a new decision, not an automatic win. A household that opted out under the old £50,000 starting point may now sit between £60,000 and £80,000 and keep some of the payment after the charge. The official calculator is the place to estimate that, using the restart date as the date payments begin again.

GOV.UK also says you must report changes to family life that affect Child Benefit after payments restart. A new partner, a separation, or another child are examples on the circumstances-change page.

What if our income is still over the threshold?

You can still restart and then pay the charge, or stay opted out and avoid the charge on future payments. GOV.UK sets out that choice. Staying registered, even with payments stopped, is the route GOV.UK describes for National Insurance credits that count towards State Pension and for the child’s National Insurance number without a separate application at 16.

If you restart and a charge is due, use PAYE or Self Assessment on the same clocks as any other High Income Child Benefit Charge year. The circumstances-change page says you can opt out or restart at any time, and that the charge does not apply if individual adjusted net income for the whole tax year is below the threshold.

In shortIn short: restart on GOV.UK, in the HMRC app, or through the Child Benefit Office if you still qualify. Allow up to 28 days for the first payment. Recalculate the charge from the restart date — opting out in an earlier year does not freeze the rules.