Child and Dependent Care Credit: Who Can Claim It

1Why this matters

Child care and adult day care are among the largest costs a working family faces, and this credit is the federal tax code's main help with them. The 2025 tax law made it larger from 2026, and an employer dependent care account can now shelter more as well, so families should look again at which saves more. Because the credit is nonrefundable, it helps middle-income families more than those with the lowest incomes, who are better served by other programs. This guide explains who qualifies, how much the credit is worth and how to claim it.

2Who qualifies for the credit?

You can claim the credit if all of these apply:

• You paid for care so that you, and your spouse if married, could work or look for work.
• The care was for a qualifying person: your dependent child under 13, or a spouse or other dependent who is physically or mentally unable to care for themselves and lived with you for more than half the year.
• You had earned income. On a joint return both spouses need earned income, unless one was a full-time student or unable to care for themselves.
• You file a joint return if married, with an exception for some people who live apart from their spouse.

For separated or divorced parents, only the parent the child lived with for more than half the year can claim the credit, even if the other parent claims the child as a dependent.

3How much is the credit worth?

The credit is a percentage of the care costs you paid, up to $3,000 for one qualifying person or $6,000 for two or more, and no more than the lower earner's earned income. Starting in 2026 the percentage is 50 at adjusted gross income of $15,000 or less. It falls by one point for each $2,000 above $15,000 until it reaches 35 percent, and falls further, as low as 20 percent, at higher incomes. The Form 2441 instructions have the full table for each year.

4Which costs count?

Costs count when the main purpose is the person's care and well-being while you work:

• Care in your home or someone else's, including by a nanny or babysitter.
• A licensed day care center or family child care home.
• Before- and after-school programs for a child in kindergarten or older, and day camp in the summer.
• Adult day care for a dependent spouse or parent who cannot care for themselves.

Overnight camp, kindergarten and private school tuition, and payments to your spouse, to a person you claim as a dependent or to your own child under 19 do not count. If you pay a household employee, such as a nanny, you may have employer tax obligations as well.

5How a dependent care account fits in

Many employers offer a dependent care flexible spending account. Starting in 2026 the limit is $7,500 a year, or $3,750 if you are married and file separately, taken from your pay before income tax and payroll taxes.

You cannot use the same costs twice. Money excluded from income through an employer plan reduces the costs you can count for the credit, dollar for dollar. Which saves more depends on your tax bracket and the credit rate for your income: the account usually wins for families in higher brackets, and the credit can win at moderate incomes where the rate is 35 percent or more. Some families use both, putting the first dollars in the account and claiming the credit on any remaining costs within the limit.

6How to claim it

Complete Form 2441 and attach it to your Form 1040. You need each care provider's name, address and taxpayer identification number, either a Social Security number or an employer identification number; ask for it when care begins, using Form W-10 if helpful. If your employer provided dependent care benefits, you must complete Part III of Form 2441 even if you do not claim the credit.

Keep receipts, and records of the dates of care and your work schedule. If a provider refuses to give a number, you can still claim the credit by showing you tried to get it. If you missed the credit in a past year, you can usually claim it within three years by amending that year's return; see our guide to unclaimed tax refunds.

7Special situations

Caring for an aging parent

Care for a parent can count if the parent lived with you for more than half the year, cannot care for themselves, and is your dependent or would be except for their income. Adult day care counts; the cost of a nursing home does not, because it is not care that lets you work while the person lives with you.

A spouse who is a student or disabled

If your spouse was a full-time student or unable to care for themselves, they are treated as earning $250 a month, or $500 a month if you paid for care for two or more people, for each month that applied. That lets a couple with one earner still claim the credit.

Looking for work

Costs paid while you were looking for work can count, but only if you had some earned income during the year.

8Other help with care costs

Families with lower incomes may get far more from child care assistance through the CCDF, which pays providers directly, and from Head Start, which is free. On your tax return, check the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit, both of which can be refunded.

9Common mistakes

• Counting the same costs for the credit and a dependent care account.
• Forgetting to get a provider's taxpayer identification number until tax time.
• Including overnight camp, private school tuition or payments to a relative you claim as a dependent.
• Using the 2025 rate of 35 percent for a 2026 return, or the reverse.
• Expecting a refund from the credit when no income tax is owed.

11What this does not tell you

The 2026 changes apply to tax years beginning after 2025, so a 2025 return uses the earlier 35 percent top rate. The rate for your income is in the current Form 2441 instructions.

This guide is general information, not tax advice, and does not cover state child care credits.