How to Get Government Help Paying for Daycare

Learn how to get government help paying for daycare.

Is the high cost of daycare eating up most of your income?

You need to work to make ends meet, but having your children in daycare every day can cost more than half of your salary, leaving you struggling to keep your bills paid. You need help, but is help available?

You might be able to get government help paying for daycare. Keep reading to learn how.

Instructions

1. Title XX

   If you live in the USA, getting government help paying for daycare can be different from one state to another. One program that you can look into is called Title XX. This is a subsidy that you can apply for through your local family services branch. Some counties allow you to apply online, while others require you to apply in person.

   They will assess your application to determine if you qualify. Qualification depends on your level of income, location and number of family members. If approved, the government will pay the majority of your daycare costs, and you will have to pay a small share yourself. Your share of the expense will be minimal, even as little as ten dollars per week. You will need to have your child registered in a daycare center that accepts this subsidy and provide the daycare information to the government to ensure that your subsidy continues.

2. Grants

   If you are a student with children, you may be eligible for government help paying for daycare in the form of several government grants that are available. To find out if you're eligible, try contacting your local education authority or check the government website grants.gov.

3. Tax Credits

   If you itemize your tax return carefully and claim all of your child care expenses you can write them off, although that is not helpful to low income earners who can't afford to pay daycare costs to begin with. There are several tax credits that student parents and low-income parents may qualify for. To learn more about these credits and how to apply for them, contact the IRS via phone or visit their website.

4. There are many programs that offer government help paying for daycare, but some of them vary from state to state. Taking advantage of all available assistance may make the difference between being able to work or attend school, and not being able to.

   Be sure to look around while you're here for more tips and information on getting grants and assistance from the government.