Roger Symonds and Cherry Beath

Don Foster is calling on local families to claim over £500 in tax breaks under a little publicised government scheme before a 31st January deadline.    Before the current system of ‘child tax credits’ was introduced in 2003, the Government made payments in 2001/02 and 2002/03 under a totally separate scheme known as the ‘children’s tax credit’.     Many people were not aware of the scheme at the time and did not claim the money, and the deadline for claiming runs out at the end of this month.   The credit was worth £529 per family in 2002/03 and was available to parents who paid tax in that year and who had a child under 16 in that year.   The money was paid at a flat rate except for higher rate taxpayers who got a reduced level of help. Don said, “In these difficult economic times, I am urging all families who are eligible for this tax credit to fill out a form and send it back to the tax office before 31^st January. “This tax credit was not very well advertised at the time, but now there is a chance for many families to claim back over £500 as long as they act now.” The forms are available here but Don has added a direct link on his website at www.donfoster.co.uk as well as making the claim form available to download directly from the website. 

Don said, “I urge those without access to the internet to contact my office as soon as possible on 01225 338 973 so that we can arrange to post them a claim form.”

This is really worth doing, please pass on the details to any families who might benefit.