Transfer Letter & HMRC Child Benefit Entitlement Letter

[angie2601]

Does anyone know of a quicker way of obtaining a HMRC child benefit entitlement letter rather than calling the department and requesting one ?
I did just this on Monday and was told it would take about 4 weeks for a copy to arrive. Today the primary school advised they want returned transfer forms back with the child benefit entitlement letter by 26/6 ?!
HMRC advised because i do not claim benefit then it will take longer for a copy to be issued.
Why can't HMRC either post a new letter each year or allow us to get a pdf copy via email contact ?
This is one worry i don't need in the school selection process !

[kenyancowgirl]

Could you include a couple of months of bank statements with the incoming Child Benefit highlighted on them, with a note saying you have requested the letter from HMRC but it may be a few weeks?

[Tinkers]

Angie is not getting child benefit so it won't be on the bank statement.

Angie, I'd talk to the school and ask them if there's an alternative. I doubt you are the only ones in this situation or that they haven't dealt with it before. Even if you are the first, then it's likely to come up again for someone else in the future.

[Sally-Anne]

Agree with Tinkers. Child Benefit is the "standard" form of address evidence because it is often one of the very few items that shows the child's name and address on it. (That is, other than in the case of separated parents, where the child benefit letter is used as evidence of main residence.)

If you have a savings account in the child's name, and receive annual interest statements for that, it should be acceptable.

In extremis, a letter from your child's current school confirming the address they hold on record should do the trick.

Lots of ways to skin this particular cat.

[Bromley22]

I really wouldn't worry too much - I was late applying for it last year and just dropped it straight to admissions at council. In fact it came through within about a week. As long as they have it by the time you fill in school preferences it's fine.

[Nikki00]

I had the same issue and bromley council have confirmed that you can send the form back and add a note to say you are waiting for the child benefit letter. Send the letter in when you receive it.

[memphis]

After all these years, why can't schools, councils and the HMRC work together on coordinating the timings and standardise the process once and for all? I don't understand how they operate but they're causing unnecessary panic amongst parents.

In an ideal world, it would make sense to have some sort of automated service coordinated centrally perhaps by the councils done annually to prompt the HMRC to issue letters by batch/year, for eg – to dispatch letters to all those born between 1st September 2003 and 31st August 2004 rather than dealing with each query on a case by case basis as and when they receive a call or online request from parents.