Universal Credit childcare costs

If you pay for childcare while you go to work, Universal Credit can pay some of your childcare costs. This includes holiday clubs, after-school clubs and breakfast clubs. If you live with a partner, you both need to be working, unless your partner cannot look after your children.

How childcare costs payments work on Universal Credit

You have to pay for your childcare costs yourself. Then you report them to Universal Credit, and Universal Credit pays some of the money back.

You will only get the money back with Universal Credit after the childcare actually happens.

If you pay for childcare after it’s been provided, we usually pay back your costs in the same assessment period that you report them.

You should try to arrange monthly payments with your childcare provider and report those costs as soon as they are paid. This should mean your childcare costs are included in your Universal Credit every assessment period.

You may be able to claim previous childcare costs if you paid for them in your current assessment period.

You can also claim up to 3 assessment periods of future childcare costs at a time if you have paid these costs up front already, and you have proof of those costs. This includes the assessment period in which you pay the childcare costs. We pay these costs back over the assessment periods for which they apply. They will not be paid back in one lump sum.

Payments for childcare costs are included in your total Universal Credit payment

Your total Universal Credit payment can go up or down, depending on how much you earn from work in each assessment period. So, if you earn more than usual during one assessment period, your total Universal Credit payment might go down.

You can get up to 85% of childcare costs paid back to you. The maximum amount for each assessment period is:

Use a benefits calculator to see how much you might get.

Get help with the upfront cost of childcare