Tax Credits: What is income

A tax credits award is based on the income of the claimant, or of both claimants if the claim is a joint one. You can find out how to calculate tax credits in the calculating tax credits section of this site.

What constitutes income is set out in the Tax Credits (Definition and Calculation of Income) Regulations 2002, SI 2002/2006 , as amended (referred to in this section as ‘the Income Regulations’). We explain in this section the detailed rules on what counts as income.

NOTE: This section of the site explains what is income for tax credit claims. Where a claimant has their tax credits terminated in-year because they are moving to universal credit, or if they claim UC in the same year that a tax credit claim has ended, there are different rules on how to calculate income. Please see our universal credit section for more information

Last reviewed/updated 1 July 2022