Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people subject to the High Income Child Benefit charge have been subject to penalty charges.

The Government introduced the High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC) from January 2013 to ensure that support is targeted at those who need it most. It applies to anyone with an individual income over £50,000, who gets Child Benefit or whose partner gets it. The charge increases gradually for taxpayers with incomes between £50,000 and £60,000.

HM Revenue and Customs may charge penalties for each year an individual fails to notify them of their liability to HICBC or send an inaccurate tax return which results in HICBC being unpaid.

Since HICBC was introduced almost 170,000 penalties have been charged for HICBC. A further breakdown of this information is published at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-income-child-benefit-charge-data/high-income-child-benefit-charge