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HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed that households can automatically boost their future State Pension payments with a single claim for a £27.05 per week benefit.

Child Benefit can be claimed by parents or carers who are responsible for raising a child under 16, or under 20 if the child is in approved education or training. Thanks to an uprating at the start of the new tax year on April 6, the benefit is now worth £27.05 per week for the first or eldest child, and £17.90 for any additional children - an annual increase of £52 and £33.80 respectively on last year's rates. Over a full year, this amounts to a total of £1,406.60 per year for the eldest or only child, and an additional £930.80 per year for each additional child, with no limit as to how many children parents can claim for.

But Child Benefit doesn't just help with the costs of childcare, as claiming it also comes with the unexpected perk of protecting your State Pension in the future.

If you claim Child Benefit, you can also get National Insurance Credits, which count towards your State Pension. These credits will be awarded to you automatically by HMRC once you start getting Child Benefit payments, and these count towards your State Pension.

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The credits can help to plug any gaps in your National Insurance record, such as if you're on maternity leave and not working, or you don't earn enough to pay National Insurance contributions, and ultimately, this can boost how much State Pension you're eligible to get once you reach State Pension age.

HMRC said: "By claiming Child Benefit, you can get:

• an allowance paid to you for each child - you'll usually get it every 4 weeks
• National Insurance credits which count towards your State Pension
• a National Insurance number for your child without them having to apply for one - they'll usually get the number shortly before they turn 16 years old

"If you choose not to get Child Benefit payments, you should still make a claim to get the other advantages.

"You'll get National Insurance credits automatically if you claim Child Benefit and your child is under 12. These credits count towards your State Pension, so you do not have gaps in your National Insurance record if either:

• You're not working
• You do not earn enough to pay National Insurance contributions

If you do not need the National Insurance credits, your family may be eligible to get the support instead. Either:

• Your husband, wife or partner can apply to transfer the credits
• A different family member who provides care for your child can apply for Specified Adult Childcare credits."

To get any new State Pension at all, you'll need a minimum of 10 qualifying years on your National Insurance record, and generally, you'll need at least 35 qualifying years to get the full rate, which is currently £241.30 per week.

The Department for Work and Pensions explains: "If your National Insurance record started before April 2016, you may have been contracted out.

"While you were contracted out, you or your employer paid more into your workplace or private pension and less into your State Pension. If you were contracted out, you will usually need more than 35 qualifying years to get the full rate of new State Pension.

"If your National Insurance record started after April 2016, you will need 35 qualifying years to get the full rate of new State Pension."

You can claim Child Benefit 48 hours after you've registered the birth of your child, or once a child comes to live with you, and it can be backdated for up to three months from the date you make the claim.

Only one person can get Child Benefit for a child, so it's up to parents and carers to decide who is the best person to claim it. Whoever makes the claim will get the National Insurance credits towards their State Pension.