Childcare you can get help paying for

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You can get help paying for childcare if it’s provided by a:

• registered childminder, nanny, playscheme, nursery or club
• childminder or nanny with a registered childminder agency or childcare agency
• registered school
• home care worker working for a registered home care agency

This is known as ‘approved childcare’.

The rules about how childcare providers become approved are different depending on where you live.

You can check if a childcare provider is approved or search for one in:

• England through Ofsted
• Wales through Care Inspectorate Wales
• Scotland through the Scottish Care Inspectorate
• Northern Ireland through the local early years team register

Sign in to your childcare account

Sign in to your childcare account if you already get Tax-Free Childcare or 30 hours free childcare.

Childcare at school

You can only get help paying for care that is outside school hours, for example after school clubs or breakfast clubs.

You cannot get help paying for:

• your child’s compulsory education
• private lessons during school time (for example, private music lessons during school hours)

Childcare provided by relatives

If you live in England or Scotland

You can only get Tax-Free Childcare to help pay for childcare provided by a relative (for example, a grandparent) if they’re a registered childminder and care for your child outside your home.

You cannot claim for 30 hours free childcare for childcare provided by a relative (for example, a grandparent).

You cannot get help for childcare provided by your partner. This is not accepted as ‘approved childcare’.

If you live in Northern Ireland

You can only get help paying for childcare provided by a relative if all of the following apply:

• they’re in a childcare approval scheme in Northern Ireland
• they care for your child outside your home
• they care for at least one other child that is not related to you

If you live in Wales

You can only get help paying for childcare provided by a relative if they’re a registered childminder and care for your child outside your home.

Foster carers

Childcare provided by a foster carer in England only counts if they’re registered as a childcare provider.

You may be able to claim if a foster carer provides childcare in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.