Last chance for parents to secure childcare vouchers before scheme closes TONIGHT forever
From tomorrow, parents will have to opt in to the new Tax-Free Childcare scheme which could leave some missing out on hundreds of pounds
MUMS and dads who have applied for childcare vouchers have until midnight to make sure they have received them or risk missing out on hundreds of pounds.
The Government's voucher scheme is available to new applicants until October 4 but you need to have got hold of them from your employer before the deadline.
Parents who've already applied for the vouchers should chase them up with their employers today.
But those who haven't started the application process yet is highly unlikely to get them in time as most employers require at least a month's notice.
Instead, from tomorrow parents will have to opt in to the new Tax-Free Childcare scheme for financial help.
It sees the Government top-up parents' savings by 20 per cent up to £2,000.
CHILDCARE VOUCHERS OR TAX-FREE CHILDCARE
IT can be difficult to know what scheme will be right for you and your family as it all depends on your personal circumstances. Here is some advice from MoneySavingExpert on which scheme could work for you.
Childcare Voucher winners:
Couples where one parent doesn't work - Parents aren't eligible for Tax-free Childcare if one parent isn't in work. The one that is can still qualify for vouchers.
Basic-rate taxpayer with childcare costs under £9,336 a year - Under this amount the saving you make with childcare vouchers exceeds the saving you can make with Tax-free Childcare.
Higher-rate taxpayer parents with total annual childcare costs of £6,252 or less. Under this amount, the saving you make with childcare vouchers exceeds the saving you can make with Tax-Free Childcare.
Higher earners - Anyone earning more than £100,00 a year isn't eligible for Tax-Free Childcare, while these high earners can get childcare vouchers.
Tax-free childcare winners:
The self-employed - Those working for themselves are eligible for Tax-Free Childcare but aren't for Childcare Vouchers
Parents with more than one child and high childcare costs - You can receive up to £2,000 per child under the new scheme but with vouchers you'll only get a set amount no matter how many children you have
But experts are warning that many parents could potentially be left worse-off under the new plan and are being urged to take action before it closes for good.
Over the past few months numerous employers have backed campaigns to keep the old salary sacrifice scheme going, which has helped millions of parents which children up to the aged of 15 since it first launched in 2005.
The voucher scheme means that you pay less in tax and national insurance and it could be worth hundreds.
It was supposed to close to new applicants from April 5 but is was delayed by six months after technical issues left thousands of parents fearing that they will be left out of pocket.
What help is available for parents?
CHILDCARE can be a costly business. Here is how you can get help.
- 30 hours free childcare - Parents of 3 and 4 year olds have been able to apply for 30 hours free childcare a week since the summer with its introduction in September.
To qualify you must work at least 16 hours a week at the national living or minimum wage and earn less than £100,000 a year. - Tax credits - For children under 16, some working families can get up to £122.50 a week depending on their income to help with childcare costs.
- Childcare vouchers - If your employer offers childcare vouchers you can get up to £933 a yeaar in tax and national insurance savings.
You pay for your childcare before your tax contributions are taken out.
This will remain open to new joiners until April 2018, when it is planned tax-free childcare will replace the vouchers. - Tax-free childcare - Available to working families and the self-employed, for every £8 you put in the government will add an extra £2.
- The full roll-out has been pushed back to March 2018.
According to the Childcare Vouchers Providers Association (CVPA), a two-parent family earning a combined £70,000 a year and spends £3,796 a year on childcare would receive £1,239 a year under the voucher scheme.
But under the tax-free system, they would get back around £759 a year - a difference of £480.
Tax-free Childcare has been one of the Government's flagship policies to help make the cost of childcare easier for parents.
In October last year, a report from the TUC found that costs had risen seven times faster than wages since 2008.
MOST READ IN MONEY
And Admiral Loans found some parents are spending more than half their salary on childcare - with some forking out up to £1,383 a month.
Parents with kids under 12 can apply for the new scheme via the
At the beginning of January, some mums and dads were told they weren't able to claim for the 30 hours of free childcare due to problems with the website.
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