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What childcare qualifies?

You must use registered or approved childcare. This can include nurseries, childminders, foster carers, out of school hours clubs and nannies.

There are different registration and approval rules for each part of the UK. Check that your childcare provider meets these rules before you make your claim.

• What is registered or approved childcare for tax credits?

Who can qualify?

You're a lone parent

You must work 16 hours or more a week to claim help with childcare costs.

You're part of a couple

Generally you and your partner must both work 16 hours or more a week to claim help. Only one of you has to work 16 hours or more if the other is:

• 'incapacitated' - this means they're ill or disabled and getting certain benefits, or in certain circumstances National Insurance credits
• in hospital
• in prison - serving a custodial sentence or remanded in custody awaiting trial or sentence
• entitled to Carer's Allowance - even if they don't get any payments because they receive other benefits instead

• Find out more about what 'incapacitated' means for tax credits

You're off work - can you still claim?

There are situations where you can still claim for help with childcare costs. These are explained below.

You're on maternity, paternity or adoption leave

If you were working at least 16 hours a week immediately before you went on leave - and any of the following apply:

• you get maternity allowance
• you're on ordinary maternity or adoption leave
• you're in the first 13 weeks of additional maternity or adoption leave
• you're on your two weeks of paternity leave

• How maternity, paternity and adoption leave affect your tax credits

You're off sick from work

If you were working at least 16 hours a week immediately before you went off sick - and both of the following apply:

• you're off sick for 28 weeks or less
• you get one of certain state benefits - for example Employment and Support Allowance, Statutory Sick Pay or National Insurance Credits because you have limited capability for work (that is your illness or disability affects the amount and type of work you can do)

If you were off work for one of the following reasons before you went off sick, you can still claim help with childcare costs:

• you were on maternity, paternity or adoption leave
• you were on the first ten days of strike leave
• you were suspended from work

You must have been working at least 16 hours a week beforehand.

If you don't return to work after 28 weeks you may not qualify any more. Contact the Tax Credit Helpline if this happens.

• Contact details for the Tax Credit Helpline

• Working Tax Credit when you can't work due to illness

How much help you can get

You can get help with up to 70 per cent of your childcare costs - up to certain limits.

If you pay childcare for:

• one child, the maximum childcare cost you can claim is £175 a week
• two or more children, the maximum cost you can claim is £300 a week

This means that the maximum help you can get for your childcare is:

• £122.50 a week for one child
• £210 a week for two or more children

But you won't necessarily get the full £122.50 or £210 a week - the actual amount you get will depend on your income. The lower your income, the more tax credits you can get.

What income limits apply?

There is no set income limit for help with childcare costs.

A couple with one child, paying £175 a week for childcare, will still get some tax credits with an annual income as high as £41,000. But this is only a very general guide.

It's important to know that:

• different income limits apply depending on your circumstances - for example if you have a large family the income limit could be higher
• you need to make a claim to get a definite answer to how much you are entitled to

You can use 'at a glance' entitlement tables to get a rough idea of the help you could get. These tables show yearly amounts of tax credits based on different amounts of income - but they don’t cover every situation.

If you want a better idea of how much you could get, there's also an online tax credits calculator you can use.

• You work 16 hours or more and pay childcare: entitlement tables

• Tax credits calculator - find out how much you can get

Childcare costs you can't claim for through tax credits

You can't claim for:

• payment from your employer towards your childcare costs, either in cash or vouchers - this includes vouchers in return for a reduction in your pay (known as a 'salary sacrifice')
• free early learning or nursery education - for example the 15 hours a week free early years education for three and four year olds in England
• payments from the government towards your childcare costs because you are a student, or you are starting work

You can still claim for any childcare costs that you actually pay for yourself. For example, if your employer pays part of your childcare costs in vouchers, you can make a claim for the rest.

If your employer offers you childcare vouchers

There is an online calculator to help you decide whether you’re better off taking the vouchers or not.

• Childcare vouchers and tax credits - better off calculator Opens new window

How to claim

When to claim

You can make your claim:

• if you've already started to use childcare
• up to seven days before you start using childcare - no earlier

If you pay for short fixed periods of childcare

This could be during the summer holidays, or to cover an emergency. To find out how to claim for short periods of childcare, see 'Tax credits for short periods of childcare'.

• Tax credits for short periods of childcare

How to claim - if you're new to tax credits

You need to get a claim form from the Tax Credit Helpline.

Fill in the claim form, including details of your average weekly childcare costs, and return it to the Tax Credit Office.

How to claim - if you're already getting tax credits

If your circumstances change and you want to claim for help with childcare costs, call the Tax Credit Helpline.

• Contact details for the Tax Credit Helpline

More useful links

• Childcare costs - how to work them out for your tax credits claim

• Childcare changes - effect on Working Tax Credit

• More about childcare (parents section)

Useful contacts

• Tax Credit Helpline - contact details