Latest news with #TaxFreeChildcare
The Sun
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Warning for 800k parents missing out on benefit worth £2,000 a year – it could be a lifesaver for the school holidays
A WARNING has been issued for 800,000 parents who risk missing out on a benefit worth £2,000 a year. Tax Free Childcare is a benefit which helps working families with the cost of paying for nursery or after school clubs. 1 Children up to the age of 12 are eligible, and this extends up to 16 if they live with a disability. To qualify, you or your partner (if you have one) need to be either employed or self-employed. In some instances, if you are not currently working you may still be able to claim if you are on incapacity benefit or severe disablement allowance. If you are eligible for the benefit, you will set up an online childcare account for your child. For every £8 you pay into this account, the government will pay in £2 to use to pay your provider. So it is important to remember that you do not get the money as a lump sum. Instead, parents get up to £500 each month paid towards the childcare your child is attending. It is worth noting that you only get the top-up when you pay in. So you must pay the £2,000 every three months (a quarter of a year) to receive the full £500. And the allowance does not roll over, so if you claim £300 in the first quarter, you can still only get £500 in the next quarter — even if you pay in more. I'm a mum of two and get a £1.7k Universal Credit payday each month people hate me as they work 40 hours a week for the same This is a little-known benefit, with MoneySavingExpert warning that 800,000 parents are unaware the scheme exists. You must also make sure that the childcare your little one attends accepts Tax-Free Childcare. To avoid disappointments, check with your provider to see if they're signed up. For more information on setting up an account, you can visit the government website. Parents on Universal Credit with one child under 17 can claim up to £1,015 a month. Meanwhile, parents of two or more children or more eligible for up to £1,739 to help pay for childcare costs - up from £950 and £1,630 respectively. CHANGES TO TAX FREE CHILD CARE From September 2025, children aged nine months to two years old will get 30 hours per week of free childcare. To qualify, the vast majority of parents will need to earn more than £9,518 but less than £100,000 a year. Your two-year-old can also get free childcare if you live in England and get any of the following benefits: Income support Income-based jobseeker's allowance (JSA) Income-related employment and support allowance (ESA) Universal Credit and your household income is £15,400 a year or less after tax, not including benefit payments The guaranteed element of pension credit Child tax credit, working tax credit (or both), and your household income is £16,190 a year or less before tax WHAT OTHER HELP IS AVAILABLE? You get child benefit if you're responsible for bringing up a child who is under 16 or under 20 if they are in approved education or training The payment is used to help parents cover the costs of childcare. It is paid at two weekly rates - £26.05 for your eldest or only child and £17.25 for any additional children. Payments are usually made every four weeks, on a Monday or Tuesday, but sometimes are made weekly. If you are claiming child benefit for a child under 12, you also receive National Insurance (NI) credits. NICs count towards your State Pension so claiming the benefit can be useful if you are missing any. Parents can also get help with free food vouchers through the government's Household Support Fund. What help is available for parents? CHILDCARE can be a costly business. Here is how you can get help. 30 hours free childcare - Parents of three and four-year-olds can apply for 30 hours free childcare a week. To qualify you must usually work at least 16 hours a week at the national living or minimum wage and earn less than £100,000 a year. Tax credits - For children under 20, some families can get help with childcare costs. Childcare vouchers - If your employer offers childcare vouchers you can get up to £55 a week in tax and national insurance savings. You pay for your childcare before your tax contributions are taken out. This scheme is open to new joiners until October 4, 2018, when it is planned that tax-free childcare will replace the vouchers. Tax-free childcare - Available to working families and the self-employed, for every £8 you put in the government will add an extra £2.
Daily Mail
26-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Martin Lewis reveals how thousands of parents are missing out on £2,000 a year
Martin Lewis has revealed how to find out if you're missing out on childcare savings. Speaking on The Martin Lewis Money Show Live, which aired last week, the finance expert revealed 800,000 parents in the UK are eligible for 'Tax-Free Childcare', but many are unaware. Under the government's 'working parents scheme', the state will pay parents back 20 per cent of childcare costs up to £500 a quarter - meaning some parents could get back £2,000 a year. Parents must be individually earning at least £850-a-month each to be eligible, and cannot earn more than £100,000 each. It only applies to children under 12, or under 16 if the child is disabled. 'If you're sending your kids to a holiday club with the school that's Ofsted-registered, you can utilise this,' he explained. Lewis also stated that he is currently 'lobbying' to change the 'hideously misnamed' scheme to 'Working Families Childcare Top-Up' arguing that 'it's framed much better' this way. The money saving expert added that those claiming Universal Credit, who are also working, can claim funds to help them with childcare costs. He explained those eligible can 'claim up to 85 percent of the cost, but up to a maximum amount: just over £1,000 if you've got one child, nearly £1,800 if you've got two children' who are under 17s. 'You do this via your Universal Credit account. You just claim it online, but sadly it is paid for in arrears. 'Again, it's the same rules about working, you have to be working or both of you working if you're in a couple.' Ahead of the summer holidays Lewis reminded parents of children who get free school meals to speak to their local council about provisions to cover the six week holiday. He highlighted that even though the children are not in school the council can still provide one meal per day as well as 'enriching activities.' 'If your child is aged four to 16 and gets free school meals in England, check for local help and do it sooner. 'Councils have to provide enriching activities and one free meal per day. Search your council's name and "holiday activities and food programme". Do the search combined and see what it's doing.' He also warned that parents eligible for the support should begin the conversation with their council as soon as possible as in some cases help will only be provided for a limited number of families. Lewis said: 'Some of them – you know, they have limited numbers, so the sooner you get in the better – some are closing and some haven't opened yet. 'And if you're in the rest of the UK – Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – they don't have the same scheme but many local councils run similar schemes and that's worth checking out.' Elsewhere in the episode Lewis also issued a reminder to parents of younger children that a new scheme is set to begin in England later this year. He said: 'Worth also noting that the 30 funded hours for aged nine months to five-year-old children for working parents in England starts this September.' The soon to be released scheme grants eligible parents to of children between the ages of three and four to an additional 15 hours of funded childcare a week. This totals 30 hours a week and 1,140 hours across a year. It comes after Martin Lewis warned Brits they should 'fix energy bills today' to save money as there 'could be some global economic changes' to come. The money-saving expert was speaking on his live money show on ITV on Tuesday evening when he received a question from the audience about the energy price cap. During the episode, Martin revealed that the current price cap is going to come down in July and we will be hearing the announcement on Friday. Despite prices coming down, the financial guru urged the audience to fix their energy bill rate instead of staying on a variable rate. Martin revealed energy prices went up by 10 percent in October, which equates to around £1,700 annually. It rose by a further one percent in January and another 6.4 percent in April, which equates to around £1,800 annually. However the price cap is apparently due to drop in July by six to eight percent, bringing prices back down to where they were in October last year. This means households will be charged £129 less for a typical annual bill from July, according to energy consultants Cornwall Insight. Despite energy prices coming down, Martin revealed the cheapest fixed rate is 18 percent below the current energy price. He warned that people across the UK should secure their energy rates now by switching to a more favourable deal and fixing their rate for the year. He said: 'You might want to sit on the variable but you can save 18 percent instantly by going to a comparison site, your usage and region will depend how much it is, so make sure you are finding the right one for you. 'If these predictions are right, fixing right now will save you massively compared to what is predicted to come, there could be some global economic change which would mean things could change massively.' He claimed that people tend to wait until prices comes down to fix but explained fixes are based on future predicted prices. He added: 'If you fix right now you will be saving 18 percent tody and you will very likely be undercutting whatever the price cap will be for the next year. Short answer, fix.' The price cap limits the cost per unit of energy and is revised every three months by the energy regulator Ofgem. Price falls are not a certainty, however, weather patterns, gas storage rules, the war in Ukraine, and tariffs could all change pricing. It comes after Martin warned Brits about the financial precautions to take before going abroad this summer. He was speaking on the summer special of his live money show on ITV, which was filmed at Aerospace Bristol. Martin revealed his top tricks for cutting the cost and hassle of summer getaways this year, including the 'things to do now to help when you go'. The financial guru revealed the best practices to adopt when it comes to paying for items abroad. When getting out physical cash before going away, Martin advised to go on a UK travel cash comparison website to find out which of the bureaus will give you the best rate. However, he urged viewers to never get cash out at the airport - as this is where you'll get the worst deal. 'Never get it at the airport,' Martin emphasised. And as for getting cash out while actually on holiday, he said only to visit an overseas bureau de change if you know there's a good rate. Martin also addressed the age old debate of whether to pay in pounds or the local currency when paying via card machine while on holiday. After asking the audience for a show of hands, he confirmed that you should always select the local currency option as you 'get hideous rates abroad'. He said: 'If you pay, and you pay in pounds, it's the card machine or the ATM that's doing the conversion and their rates are pants!' Even though card machines will try to get you to pay in pounds, Martin said: 'The reason they're trying to force you and be so aggressive is because it makes them more money, it doesn't save you money.' As well as financial considerations, Martin emphasised the importance of checking your passport is in date before travelling. He also said 1.8 million EHIC cards are due to expire this year and those looking for a new one will now need a GHIC. These cards will give the holder access to health services abroad at the same price as a local. However, he said that these should be used in addition to travel insurance, and not as a replacement. GHIC cards can be obtained for free - though fraudulent websites will often try to flog 'fast-track' deals. Martin said: 'You can renew for free. You must never pay for your EHIC or GHIC card.' Often, finding the best deals for for holidays, especially as a family, will take a bit of effort. The MoneySavingExpert founder said cancelling (if free or cheap) and then rebooking may sometimes mean you can end up with a better-value deal. In addition, knowing your flight compensation rights before you go may help you win back hundreds of pounds if a payout is needed. Delays and cancellations that are the fault of the airline could see you getting money back into your pocket.
Belfast Telegraph
15-05-2025
- Business
- Belfast Telegraph
Education Minister announces £55m extension to childcare scheme
The Executive Agreed the additional investment into early learning and childcare for 2025 and 2026 on Thursday. The NICSS was first introduced in September 2024, it provides a 15% subsidy to working parents eligible for Tax Free Childcare (TFC). However, this was previously only for children who had not yet started primary school. With the latest investment, it will now include children who are in school at the start of this coming school year. 'On becoming Education Minister, I pledged to help working parents with the cost of childcare,' said the Education Minister. 'I am very pleased to announce that the Northern Ireland Childcare Subsidy Scheme will be extended to include school age children from 1 September 2025. 'Last year, my priority was to develop a subsidy scheme that would reduce childcare costs for the parents of very young children, who often experience the greatest costs. 'So far, the Childcare Subsidy Scheme has saved Northern Ireland parents approximately £8m which they would have had to pay in childcare fees. 'I now want to build on this and support a much greater number of parents with the costs of childcare. 'Today's funding boost will allow us to do this and provide support for a much larger group of working parents,' said Mr Givan. It is estimated that the number of children who will benefit from the scheme will increase by 60%, from 15,000 to roughly 24,000. 'This means that the working parents of school age children will now receive the 15% subsidy, up to the capped amount, on their childcare bills,' said the DUP MLA. 'When this is combined with Tax Free Childcare, it will provide a reduction of up to 32% on childcare bills.' 'Today's investment will enable the significant progress that has been made over the past year to be sustained, with further growth in key areas. 'I am now able to expand vital early years services such as Sure Start, the Pathway Fund, Toybox and the Bookstart Baby Programme. 'Over the next year I will also continue the expansion of pre-school education towards the goal of providing 22.5 hours per week for all children in their immediate pre-school year. 'At least an additional 100 settings providing the next cohort of 2,000 children with a full-time place will be available by September 2026. "Combined, the package of support reflects my ongoing commitment to prioritise early years. 'Given the impact this can have on children's future outcomes, particularly those from more disadvantaged backgrounds or with additional needs,' he added
