The child and dependent care credit is a tax credit that can help you pay for care for eligible children and other dependents (people who qualify). The child and dependent care credit is a federal tax benefit that helps families pay the costs of child care needed to work or look for work. The credit is also available to families who must pay for the care of an incapacitated spouse or dependent adult. Individual who qualifies for part of the year: If a person qualifies for only part of the tax year, only expenses paid for caring for the person during that part of the year are included in the credit calculation.
The child and dependent care credit is a tax credit you can apply for the child care expenses you paid for your dependent child under 13 (with no age limit for a disabled dependent) so that you (and your spouse, if you file a joint return) can actively work or look for work. In general, the higher your dependent care expenses and the lower your income, the higher the tax credit. You can use them anyway, but you can't use the same expenses to apply for a credit for child and dependent care and a deduction for medical expenses. The IRS has provided detailed information on other, less common factors that may affect whether a person qualifies for the child and dependent care credit.
You can apply for the credit if you (or your spouse, if you are married and file a joint return) pay someone to care for one or more qualified people so they can work, find work, or attend school full time, and your income level is within the income limits set for the credit. If you're a family employer, you may have to withhold and pay Social Security and Medicare taxes and pay the federal unemployment tax. You can apply for this credit if you (or your spouse, in the case of a joint return) pay someone to care for one or more qualified people so they can work or look for work, and your income level is within the income limits set for the credit. Payments to family members or dependents: The care provider cannot be your spouse, the parent of the eligible person if the qualifying person is your child under 13, your child under 19, or a dependent that you or your spouse can claim on your return.
The amount of the credit for child and dependent care depends on the number of children or dependents in care, your family's income, and the amount your family paid for care during the year. To help you calculate the right amount of child and dependent care credit you can apply for, you should keep track of care-related expenses and the family members receiving care. You can apply for the dependent care credit even if you don't itemize your deductions, but you can't apply for the dependent care credit if you're married and file separately. Receiving the credit for child and dependent care will not change the amount you receive from any other federal benefit, including unemployment insurance, Medicaid, SNAP (formerly food stamps), SSI, SSDI, TANF, WIC, Section 8, or Public Housing.
Expenses reimbursed through an employer-sponsored flexible dependent care spending account cannot be requested as a credit for child and dependent care. Learn about the 13 states with state credits for child and dependent care that have adapted their credits based on federal expansion. If you haven't filed a tax return before or don't file it every year and you're eligible for the child and dependent care credit, be sure to file it to receive the credit this year. .
