Higher income parents still receiving Child Benefit should be registered by now with HMRC for Self-Assessment. In order to avoid a penalty, the deadline to do so was 5 October.

Parents who stopped receiving Child Benefit payments before 7 January 2013 did not need to take any action. However, parents who did not stop payments until after 7 January or who are continuing to receive Child Benefit, and have income over £50,000, should have registered for Self-Assessment for the 2012–13 tax year by the above date. Registration enables them to declare the Child Benefit received, pay the tax charge on time and avoid penalties for failure to notify HMRC on time.

Prior to the deadline, letters were being sent to around two million higher rate taxpayers in respect of the changes. More information is available on the HMRC website.