How do I qualify for free childcare hours in 2026?

Full answer

The free childcare hours scheme in England has expanded significantly in recent years, now covering children from 9 months old through to starting school, and understanding both the earnings floor and the earnings ceiling is essential to know whether you qualify. **The age-based entitlement structure** Eligible working parents can access government-funded childcare hours from when their child turns 9 months old, with the entitlement increasing at various ages, building up to 30 funded hours a week during term time (or a lower equivalent number of hours if spread across the full year) once the child is old enough, continuing until the child starts school -- always check the current gov.uk guidance for the exact age bands and hours available, since this scheme has been phased in over several years and the precise structure by age can be detailed. **The minimum earnings floor** To qualify as "working" for this scheme, each parent generally needs to expect to earn at least the equivalent of working 16 hours a week at the National Living Wage (or National Minimum Wage for their age band) over the coming three months -- this broadly ensures the scheme targets working families, rather than being available regardless of employment status. Self-employed parents (including those newly self-employed) have specific rules for how this earnings level is assessed, sometimes with extra flexibility for those in their first year of trading. **The £100,000 earnings ceiling -- per parent, not household** Crucially, if either parent individually has an adjusted net income above £100,000 a year, the family becomes ineligible for the funded hours entirely -- this is assessed per PARENT, not combined household income, meaning a couple where one parent earns £150,000 and the other earns nothing would NOT qualify, while two parents each earning £95,000 (a combined household income of £190,000) WOULD still qualify, since neither individually crosses the £100,000 threshold. This mirrors the same "individual adjusted net income" test used for the Personal Allowance taper and the High Income Child Benefit Charge. **Reducing adjusted net income near the threshold** As with other income-threshold-based benefits, pension contributions (particularly via salary sacrifice, which reduces gross pay itself) and Gift Aid donations can reduce your adjusted net income for this test -- a parent close to or just over £100,000 may be able to bring their adjusted net income back under the threshold through additional pension contributions, potentially preserving eligibility for free childcare hours worth a substantial amount over a year. **Applying and the three-month reconfirmation cycle** Eligible parents apply through the Childcare Choices website (which also administers Tax-Free Childcare), receiving an eligibility code that's given to the childcare provider -- crucially, eligibility must be RECONFIRMED every three months, and failing to reconfirm on time can result in a temporary loss of the funded hours, so it's important to respond to reconfirmation reminders promptly. **Interaction with Tax-Free Childcare** The free hours scheme can be used alongside Tax-Free Childcare (which provides a 20% top-up on additional childcare costs beyond the free hours, up to certain limits), though eligibility criteria for each scheme are assessed and confirmed together through the same online system, using broadly similar (though not identical) earnings tests. **What the free hours don't cover** The funded hours typically only cover the core childcare place -- many nurseries charge additional fees for meals, nappies, trips, or "consumables" on top of the funded hours, and some providers only offer the free hours across a limited number of days or in combination with additional paid hours, so actual out-of-pocket costs can still be significant even for a family using the full funded entitlement. **Practical tip** If your income is close to £100,000 and you're at risk of losing free childcare hours entirely, model whether an increased pension contribution (which also earns tax relief in its own right) could bring your adjusted net income back under the threshold, since losing the funded hours entirely over a relatively small amount of extra income can represent a very steep effective marginal cost.

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