[2025] UKUT 166 (AAC)

S.30 of the Childcare Payments Act 2014 (“the 2014 Act”) provides that

“Termination of tax credit awards

(1)

In this section “the relevant day”, in relation to a person who has made a declaration of eligibility for an entitlement period, means—

(a)

the first day of the entitlement period, or

(b)

if later, the day on which the declaration of eligibility for the entitlement period was made.

(2)

This subsection applies where—

(a)

a person (“P”) has made a valid declaration of eligibility for an entitlement period,

(b)

an award of a tax credit is or has been made—

(i)

to P or to a person who is P's partner on the relevant day (whether on a single claim or a joint claim), or

(ii)

to both of them on a joint claim, and

(c)

the award is for a period that includes the relevant day.

(3)

Where subsection (2) applies, the award of the tax credit terminates immediately before the relevant day, regardless of whether the decision on the claim was made before or after the relevant day.

This is subject to subsections (4) to (7).

(4)

Where a person has made a valid declaration of eligibility for more than one entitlement period beginning during the determination period (see subsection (5)), the award of the tax credit is terminated immediately before the day which is the relevant day in relation to the first of those entitlement periods.

(5)

In subsection (4) the “determination period”, in relation to an award of a tax credit, means the period—

(a)

beginning with the day on which the claim for the tax credit was made, and

(b)

ending with the day on which the decision on the claim was made.

(6)

Where—

(a)

a person has applied for a review under section 21A of the Tax Credits Act 2002 of a decision not to make an award of a tax credit or to terminate such an award, and

(b)

the conclusion on the review is that the decision is varied or cancelled,

subsection (3) does not apply in respect of the award in relation to any entitlement period beginning before the day on which the person is notified of the conclusion on the review.

(7)

Where—

(a)

a person has brought an appeal under section 38 of the Tax Credits Act 2002 against a decision not to make an award of a tax credit or to terminate such an award, and

(b)

the appeal is upheld,

subsection (3) does not apply in respect of the award in relation to any entitlement period beginning before the day on which the person is notified of the decision on the appeal.

(8)

Where an award of a tax credit made to a person is terminated by virtue of this section—

(a)

HMRC must notify the person of that fact,

(b)

the tax credits legislation applies in relation to the person with such modifications as may be made in regulations, and

(c)

the amount of any tax credit to which the person is entitled is to be calculated in accordance with the tax credits legislation, subject to any such modifications of that legislation.

(9)

Regulations may make further provision for the purpose of securing that, where a person makes a valid declaration of eligibility, any entitlement of the person, or a person who is the person's partner, to payments under the tax credits legislation ceases immediately before the relevant day.

(10)

Regulations under subsection (9) may, in particular—

(a)

provide that the tax credits legislation applies in relation to the person whose entitlement to such payments has ceased with such modifications as may be specified in the regulations, and

(b)

apply any provision of this section with such modifications as may be so specified.

(11)

If—

(a)

a person makes a declaration of eligibility for an entitlement period, and

(b)

at any time after the relevant day HMRC determine that the declaration was not valid,

that does not affect anything done by virtue of this section as a result of the making of the declaration.

(12)

In this section—

•

“joint claim” and “single claim” have the same meaning as in the Tax Credits Act 2002;

•

“the tax credits legislation” means the Tax Credits Act 2002 and any provision made under that Act.

(13)

This section ceases to have effect when the repeal of Part 1 of the Tax Credits Act 2002 made by Schedule 14 to the Welfare Reform Act 2012 has fully come into force.”

S.4 of the 2014 Act provides for declarations of eligibility in the following terms:

“Declarations of eligibility

(1)

For the purposes of this Act a “declaration of eligibility” is a statement made by a person for an entitlement period which states that the person is an eligible person for the entitlement period.

(2)

A declaration of eligibility made by a person for an entitlement period is “valid” for the purposes of this Act if—

(a)

HMRC are satisfied that the person is an eligible person for the entitlement period,

(b)

on the day on which the declaration is made, there is no other person who—

(i)

holds an active childcare account in respect of the relevant child (see subsection (4)), or

(ii)

is seeking to hold an active childcare account in respect of that child (see subsection (5)), and

(c)

the declaration is made in accordance with regulations under this section.

(3)

But subsection (2)(b) does not apply for the purpose of determining whether a declaration of eligibility made for the purposes of opening a childcare account is valid (see instead section 17(2)(c)).

(4)

In subsection (2)(b) “the relevant child” means the child in respect of whom the person making the declaration holds a childcare account.

For what is meant by an “active” childcare account, see section 17(3).

(5)

For the purposes of this section a person is “seeking to hold an active childcare account” if—

(a)

the person has applied to open a childcare account and the application has not yet been determined,

(b)

the person has made a valid declaration of eligibility for an entitlement period which has not yet begun, or

(c)

the person has made a declaration of eligibility for an entitlement period which, if valid, would result in the person holding an active childcare account for that period.

(6)

Regulations may make further provision about declarations of eligibility, including, in particular—

(a)

provision specifying, or enabling HMRC to specify, information which a person making a declaration of eligibility is required to provide to HMRC;

(b)

provision specifying, or enabling HMRC to specify, the form and manner in which declarations of eligibility may be made;

(c)

provision specifying the times when declarations of eligibility may be made;

(d)

provision about the consequences of making a declaration of eligibility—

(i)

after the beginning of the entitlement period for which it is made, or

(ii)

at such other time as may be specified;

(e)

provision for any consequences specified by virtue of paragraph (d) not to apply in specified circumstances or if specified conditions are met;

(f)

provision specifying circumstances in which a person, or a person of a specified description, may make a declaration of eligibility on another person's behalf, including provision enabling HMRC to appoint a person for that purpose;

(g)

provision treating things done, or omitted to be done, by a person who makes a declaration of eligibility on another person's behalf as having been done, or omitted, by that other person.

(7)

In subsection (6) “specified” means specified in the regulations.”

S.13 of the 2014 Act provides that

“Neither the person nor his or her partner may be receiving other childcare support

(1)

A person meets the condition of eligibility in this section if, at the date of the declaration—

(a)

no other relevant childcare support is payable to the person in respect of any relevant period, and

(b)

the person has not made, and does not intend to make, a claim that would result in any other relevant childcare support becoming payable to the person in respect of any relevant period.

(2)

“Other relevant childcare support” means any payments towards the costs of childcare which are made out of funds provided by a national authority, other than—

(a)

payments under this Act, or

(b)

payments of a description specified in regulations.

(3)

In subsection (2) “national authority” means any of the following—

(a)

a Minister of the Crown (within the meaning of the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975);

(b)

the Scottish Ministers;

(c)

the Welsh Ministers;

(d)

a Northern Ireland department.

(4)

“Relevant period”, in relation to a declaration of eligibility, means a period which—

(a)

includes the date of the declaration,

(b)

includes the whole or any part of the entitlement period for which the declaration is made, or

(c)

falls within that entitlement period.

(5)

In the case of a declaration of eligibility made for the purposes of opening a childcare account, any reference in subsection (4) to the entitlement period for which the declaration is made is to be read as a reference to the period of 3 months beginning with the date of the declaration.”

At the relevant time (August 2019), Article 7(1) of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (Commencement No.23 and Transitional and Transitory Provisions) Order 2015 (“the No.23 Order”) provides that

“Transitional provision: claims for housing benefit, income support or a tax credit

7(1) Except as provided by paragraphs (2) to (6), a person may not make a claim for housing benefit, income support or a tax credit (in the latter case, whether or not as part of a Tax Credits Act couple) on any date where, if that person made a claim for universal credit on that date (in the capacity, whether as a single person or as part of a couple, in which he or she is permitted to claim universal credit under the Universal Credit Regulations 2013), the provisions of the Act listed in Schedule 2 to the No. 9 Order would come into force under article 3(1) and (2)(a) to (c) of this Order in relation to that claim for universal credit”.

For the claimant’s postcode, legacy benefit claims were stopped from 25 July 2018. It follows that, from 25 July 2018, he was prevented from claiming tax credits unless he came within one of the exceptions in Articles 7(2)-(6). Article 7(6) provides that

“(6)

Paragraph (1) does not apply to a claim for a tax credit where a person has or had, or persons have or had, an award of child tax credit or working tax credit in respect of a tax year and that person or those persons makes or make (or is or are treated as making) a claim for that tax credit for the next tax year”.