More than 401,300 families benefitted from £44.4 million in
government funding towards childcare costs in September 2022, HM
Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has revealed.
Compared to September 2021, the latest Tax-Free Childcare
statistics show the number of families who are using Tax-Free
Childcare has increased by 85,475. But thousands of families are
still missing out on the top-up which could save them up to
£2,000 a year per child towards the cost of their childcare.
Tax-Free Childcare provides working families, earning up to
£100,000 a year, with financial help towards childcare. For every
£8 paid into a Tax-Free Childcare online account, families will
automatically receive an additional £2 from the government. This
means they can receive up to £500 every three months (£2,000 a
year), or £1,000 (£4,000 a year) if their child is disabled.
The top up payments can be used to pay for any approved childcare
for children aged 11 or under, or up to 17 if the child has a
disability whether your child goes to nursery, a child minder,
has term-time wraparound care or goes to a holiday club.
Families can check their eligibility and see the options for
childcare support at Childcare Choices.
Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s
Director General for Customer Services, said:
We know childcare can be expensive so using Tax-Free Childcare
can make a huge difference to household finances. To find out
more, search ‘Tax-Free Childcare’ on GOV.UK.
Families could be eligible for Tax-Free Childcare if they:
- have a child or children aged 11 or under. They stop being
eligible on 1 September after their 11th birthday. If their child
has a disability, they may get up to £4,000 a year until they are
17
- earn, or expect to earn, at least the National Minimum Wage
or Living Wage for 16 hours a week, on average
- each earn no more than £100,000 per annum
- do not receive tax credits, Universal Credit or childcare
vouchers
A full list of the eligibility criteria is
available on GOV.UK.
Opening an online Tax-Free Childcare account is straightforward
and can take around 20 minutes to sign up. Accounts can be opened
at any time, money can be deposited and used straight away or
when it’s needed. Unused money in the account can be withdrawn at
any time. Go to GOV.UK to register to
get started.
The government has launched an awareness raising advertising
campaign to ensure families get the childcare support they are
entitled to. Visit Childcare Choices to learn about the options
and find out the best childcare offer for families.
The government is offering help for households.
Check GOV.UK to find out what cost of living support, including
help with childcare
costs, families could be eligible for.
Further information
More information about Tax-Free Childcare and how
to register.
Latest Tax-Free Childcare
statistics were released on 16 November 2022. Data is
available up to September 2022.
HMRC has produced a
refreshed Tax-Free
Childcare guide for parents, which explains the reasons and
benefits for signing up to the scheme.
Each eligible child requires their own Tax-Free Childcare
account. If families have more than one eligible child, they will
need to register an account for each child. The 20% government
top-up is then applied to deposits made for each child, not
household.
Account holders must confirm their details are up to date every
three months to continue receiving the government top-up.
Childcare providers can also sign up for a childcare provider account
via GOV.UK to receive payments from parents and carers via
the scheme.
