COULD THE FAMILY TAX CREDIT FOR CHILDREN WHO HAVE GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL BE ABOLISHED FROM JULY?

COULD THE FAMILY TAX CREDIT FOR CHILDREN WHO HAVE GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL BE ABOLISHED FROM JULY?

Let’s look at the criteria to be used to assess eligibility for family allowances for children after graduation from high school. Employees who have children who have graduated from secondary school should be aware that the end of the school year also marks the end of their children’s legal status as students.

With the end of the student status, the child ceases to be a dependent beneficiary in respect of the family allowance, which means that the advance tax declaration previously submitted by the parents needs to be amended.

To understand and know how to amend the declaration, we need to look at the family allowance entitlement.
The family allowance is paid for children entitled to a family allowance (legally, child-care allowance = schooling allowance).

It is important to emphasise that it is the entitlement to the child-care allowance that should be examined, rather than the actual parent to whose account the child-care is paid.

So, if you have a school-age child, you will be entitled to the child-care allowance in the following cases:
  • With regard to children of compulsory school age: In Hungary, compulsory education lasts until the end of the academic year in which a student turns sixteen years of age. The compulsory education of students with special educational needs may be extended until the end of the academic year when they turn twenty-three years of age.
  • After the termination of compulsory education, for a child who is enrolled in a public education institution or a vocational training institution (secondary school) until the last day of the school year in which he/she turns twenty years old (or for a child with special educational needs turns twenty-three years old).
The school year ends in June for a child who has graduated from secondary school. Thus, from 1 July, no child-care allowance and no family tax credit is due.

Beneficiaries must declare this change to their employer by the July payroll at the latest.

The declaration amendment submitted to the employer is particularly important because the parent will have a tax payment difference at the end of the year due to the unjustified child-care allowance and may also be subject to a 12% differential penalty.


Step-by-step actions:

In July, a new “modification” declaration must be submitted to the employer, indicating that the child has completed secondary education, and the field “Dependants” must be marked “0” (as not eligible for the benefit).

Depending on which path the child takes after finishing secondary school, the child-care allowance and, thus, the family tax allowance, may be available again for the next period.

Let’s look at what can happen:


I. The child starts higher education from September

No child-care allowance or family tax allowance is available for a child in higher education. No additional family allowance can be claimed for one child.

On the other hand, if there is a younger child in the family for whom the parent is still entitled to the child-care allowance, the university/college student will be counted in the number of children, increasing the amount of the amount of the monthly benefit (unless he/she has an independent income, in which case he/she will not be considered at all). In this case, the declaration submitted for July will need to be amended again in September.

What a private individual should do towards his/her employer:
  • For the month of July, an amending family tax allowance declaration with the dependent status code of the child being “0”.
  • In September, submission of a new declaration with the dependent code of the child in higher education being “2” (marking the younger dependent child as beneficiary with code “1”).
In any case, this declaration can only be submitted from the beginning of September, even if the parent expects already in July that his/her child will continue his/her studies.

A child who continues studies in higher education is counted retroactively in July and August as well, which affects the amount of the discount.

Things to do when filing the tax return:
The difference for July and August can be claimed back in the 2021 tax return.

The benefit can only be claimed retroactively for these months on the basis of a certificate issued by the training institution, so the earliest you can claim this benefit is in your tax return, and you cannot make a declaration to your employer for this period.


II. Child studying in secondary school from September onwards

Secondary school students who, after the summer break, return to full-time education in a public institution (e.g., vocational training in possession of a school-leaving certificate) are entitled to schooling allowance or child-care allowance until the end of the school year in which they reach the age of 20 (or 23 in the case of children with special educational needs). In this case, the family allowance claim must be resubmitted to the employer in September. And the discount will also be available retroactively for July and August when preparing the year-end tax return.

What a private individual should do towards his/her employer:
  • For the month of July, an amended family tax allowance declaration with the dependent status code of the child being “0”.
  • For September, a new amended declaration must be filled, with the dependent status code of the child concerned set to “1”. (beneficiary dependant).
What to do with the family support paying agent:
From September onwards, you will have to reapply for the child-care allowance, as it is not due automatically. To apply, you must provide proof of school attendance.

Things to do when filing the tax return:
When filing your tax return, you can claim tax discount for the two months of the summer retroactively under 20 May of the following year. In the draft, the months of July and August will not be automatically included, so the individual will have to overwrite the entitlement for those months.


III. The child does not continue studying

If a child who has left secondary school does not continue his/her education, the parent will not be eligible for the child-care allowance or the family tax credit after him/her from July.

What a private individual should do towards his/her employer:
For the month of July, submission of an amended family tax allowance declaration with the dependent status code of the child being “0”.

Although the child’s student status ends in June, the student card issued by the secondary school is valid until 31 October. This means that entitlement to health care services is considered settled for an additional 45 days from 31 October.

If the child has neither a student nor an insured (employment) relationship after the 45th day, he/she will have to pay the health care service contribution from 16 December to be entitled to health care. NAV (the National Tax and Customs Authority) will automatically impose the payment obligation and inform the young person accordingly.

The health care service contribution can be paid by another person instead of the individual, but this requires the approval of NAV.

More information on the health care service contribution is available on the NEAK website: Nemzeti Egészségbiztosítási Alapkezelő - Egészségügyi szolgáltatási járulékfizetés (gov.hu)


Prepared by Melinda Lukács