Working parents could get as much as £500 this summer to help pay for childcare.
With the school term coming to an end, families struggling financially amid the cost of living crisis can use the money to help pay for holiday clubs and out-of-school activities over the summer.
But an HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) scheme can give parents who are in work as much as £2,000 per year to help with childcare costs, the Daily Record reports.
READ MORE: PIP and other benefits claimants to miss out on £500 payments
Tax-Free Childcare gives eligible households as much as £500 every three-month period — or £1,000 if their child has a disability — to put towards approved childcare schemes. For each £8 that is put into Tax-Free Childcare online account, recipients will get an extra £2 if they have a child aged 11 or under — or 17 if they are disabled.
But the Government department has recently warned that hundreds of thousands of households are missing out on the help, with recent data indicating that approximately 1.3 million families may be eligible.
Parents and carers are being urged to check their eligibility and register for Tax-Free Childcare via GOV.UK, here. Across the UK, 512,415 families used Tax-Free Childcare in the 2021 to 2022 tax year, compared to 374,135 in the 2020 to 2021 tax year.
Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, said: “Tax-Free Childcare can make a big difference to families, helping with the bills for things like nurseries, childminders and after school clubs.”
Helen Whately, HM Treasury’s Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said: “It’s fantastic that more parents are taking up Tax-Free Childcare. This support provides a helping hand with childcare costs for working families.
“With over one million families eligible, I want to encourage parents to take advantage of Tax-Free Childcare and keep the extra pounds in their pocket.”
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