Family allowance is a weekly tax free benefit payable to people living in Guernsey and Alderney who are bringing up children and meet eligibility criteria.
Who can claim the allowance?
- You can apply for family allowance if you are responsible for bringing up a child who is:
- Under school leaving age
- Under 18 and still in full-time education
- Your gross household income is below £120,000 each year.
Eligibility
- Any person who is responsible for a child can claim family allowance, although it is usually claimed by the person who has day to day care of the child. But, only one person can receive family allowance in respect of the child.
- If you have lived away from Guernsey or Alderney for a period of time or are subject to certain immigration conditions, you may have to wait before you can receive a payment. If these situations apply to you, please let the team know.
How much will I get?
- Family allowance will be paid into your bank account on a weekly basis. The rate is the same for each child in your family.
- The current rate is set out in the leaflet Benefit Payment & Contribution Rates - Leaflet 50, which is available in the downloads section of this page.
- If you aren't working and you are:-
- Aged 20 or over; and
- getting family allowance for a child under 16
- A contribution credit will also be awarded each week to protect your contribution record for pension purposes. This may help you decide who should claim family allowance.
How to claim
- You should claim family allowance as soon as you've registered the birth of your child or they come to live with you. Family allowance can only be backdated by up to three months from the date you became entitled.
- To make a claim you should complete and return the family allowance claim form (FAM12). This form is available in the downloads section of this page. The same FAM12 form is also used to register your child for a Social Security number and access to Health Benefits.
- If your child was born outside of Guernsey or Alderney we will need to see their original birth certificate. Please send this with your completed application.
How claims are decided
- In law, the Administrator of Social Security is responsible for deciding claims. You will be told of the decision in writing.
- You should ask us to review the decision if you disagree with the Administrator because:-
- You think the office dealing with your claim has made an error or missed important evidence.
- You disagree with the reasons for the decision.
- You want to have the decision looked at again.
- If you still disagree with the decision, you may appeal to an independent Tribunal within 28 days. Information about the Family Allowance Appeals Tribunal can be found on the webpage gov.gg/FAMappeals.
Making a change to your claim
- It is important that we have the correct information about your claim and we know about any changes in your circumstances. For example, you should tell us if:-
- Your gross annual household income is, or expected to be, above £120,000
- You or your child change address or intend to leave the island for longer than 26 weeks
- The bank account we-re paying into changes
- Your child leaves full-time education or attends education outside the Bailiwick
- Your child no longer lives with you
- Your child is no longer being financially supported by you
- You can report changes by emailing pensionsallowances@gov.gg or calling the Customer Hub on 221000.
Children's health & education
- Following changes made to family allowance in January 2022, the States now subsidise medical consultations for children. So, you will pay less for your child to access primary and emergency care (£25 for a GP or Emergency Department consultation and £15 for a nurse).
- Additionally, all children can receive free annual dental check-ups and dental health education in schools; along with extended cultural development opportunities for pupils attending States primary schools.
- A copy of the Policy Letter bringing about these changes, Building a better future: Children's health and education, and a Frequently Asked Questions document can be found in the downloads section of this page.
