Tax credit claimants urged to renew now

THOUSANDS of tax credits claimants across Halton are being urged to renew online with just weeks to go before the deadline.

HM Revenue And Customs (HMRC) has said that there are 561,800 claimants in the North West.

There are four weeks left until the deadline on Sunday, July 31, and HMRC figures have shown that there are 7,900 people who receive tax credits in Derek Twigg’s parliamentary constituency of Halton, which includes Widnes, Hale Village, and much of Runcorn.

In Graham Evans’s seat of Weaver Vale – which includes Daresbury, Frodsham and eastern parts of Runcorn – the HMRC figures illustrated that there are 5,800 claimants.

A HMRC spokesman said that claimants must tell the organisation about any changes to their circumstances that they have not already reported, including changes to working hours, childcare costs or income.

Changes can be reported online or via a new HMRC app.

HMRC’s director general for benefits and credits Nick Lodge said: “We are delighted that many people are choosing to renew online.

“The online service means that people can renew at any time of the day or night, without having to call us.

“Online help is there to support people and our webchat facility can also answer most queries you may have.”

According to the HMRC spokesman, renewing online is ‘quick, convenient and easier than ever before’, while there is also special team to support vulnerable customers who cannot access the internet.

Across the country at the start of July, the spokesman added that more than 1.5m people had already renewed their tax credits, with 500,000 of these choosing to do so online.

A total of 3.1m people in the UK will need to renew their tax credits.

For more information visit www.gov. uk/manage-your-tax-credits either