Help with childcare costs

Tax-Free Childcare (whole UK)

You open an online account and pay your provider through it. For every £8 you pay in, the government adds £2, up to £500 every 3 months per child (£2,000 a year), or £1,000 every 3 months (£4,000 a year) for a disabled child.

• Children under 12, or under 17 if disabled.
• You (and your partner) are working and each expect to earn at least £2,643.68 every 3 months if aged 21 or over, which is 16 hours a week at the National Living Wage.
• Neither of you expects adjusted net income over £100,000.
• You can't use it while getting Universal Credit or tax credits.

Apply on GOV.UK. You reconfirm every 3 months.

Free hours

England

• Every 3 and 4 year old: 15 hours a week (570 hours a year).
• Working parents: 30 hours a week, 38 weeks a year, from when a child is 9 months old until they start school, using the same income rules as Tax-Free Childcare.
• 2 year olds: 15 hours if you get certain help, including Universal Credit with take-home earnings of £15,400 a year or less.

Check and apply on GOV.UK. You also reconfirm every 3 months.

Wales

All 3 and 4 year olds get free part-time early education. Working parents can get up to 30 hours a week of education and childcare through the Childcare Offer for Wales. Flying Start gives free part-time childcare to 2 year olds in many areas.

Scotland

All 3 and 4 year olds, and 2 year olds in families on certain benefits, get up to 1,140 hours a year of funded early learning and childcare, with a free meal on the days they attend. mygov.scot

Northern Ireland

Children in their pre-school year can get a funded place through the Pre-School Education Programme. Use Tax-Free Childcare or Universal Credit for other costs. Childcare Choices

Childcare through Universal Credit

If you're working (both of you, in a couple, unless one can't because of ill health), Universal Credit pays back up to 85% of registered childcare costs, up to £1,071.09 a month for one child or £1,836.16 for two or more. You pay first, then report the cost. Your work coach can sometimes help with the first bill up front.

Which is better?

If you can get Universal Credit, the 85% usually beats Tax-Free Childcare's 20%. But you can't have both, and moving from Universal Credit to Tax-Free Childcare can't easily be reversed for 3 months. A benefits calculator on GOV.UK can compare the two.

Sources

Every figure on this page is copied from these official pages, for April 2026 to March 2027 (checked 3 November 2026):

• GOV.UK: Tax-Free Childcare, check if you're eligible
• GOV.UK: Help paying for childcare
• GOV.UK: Universal Credit, what you'll get

This is a guide, not advice. The office that runs each benefit decides who gets it. Rules can change.