A number of social welfare payments are available to families that could go towards the cost of childcare.
The Department of Social Protection provides these payments to support parents and children.
Some of the payments are means-tested with criteria ranging from "your family circumstances and other factors, such as whether you have enough PRSI contributions or you are on a low income."
All of the available payments to parents/families can be found on citizensinformation.ie.
Here are five social welfare payments that could help with the cost of childcare.
Parents benefit
This is a payment for parents who are on parental leave from work and have paid a certain amount of PRSI.
Each parent gets five weeks' payment in the child’s first two years after birth or adoption and is available for any child born on or after November 1, 2019.
One parent family payment
This payment is available to men and women who are raising a child without the support of a partner. Applicants must satisfy a means test and a habitual residence test.
Jobseekers transitional payment
This is a special payment for lone parents whose youngest child is aged between seven and 13.
The back to work family dividend
This payment is designed to help families who moved from social welfare into employment. Financial support is given to people with qualified children "who take up employment or self-employment and as a result stop claiming a jobseeker's payment or a one-parent family payment."
Working family payment
This is a weekly tax-free payment available to employees with children. To qualify you must have at least one child who normally lives with you or is financially supported by you while your annual income must be below a certain threshold to qualify for this payment.
