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Dependent Care Expense - Examples

Q1. Judy and John Smith are applying for SNAP. Their household also includes their 6 and 10 year old children and John’s 83 year old great aunt, Sally. Judy works part time and is an eligible student. John works in construction and his hours vary widely. Both children attend an after school program at the YMCA, Monday through Friday. Judy and John pay $25 per child, per week. Judy and John pay a neighbor $50 per week to prepare lunch and periodically check on Sally until they are able to return home in the evening. Which of these expenses are allowable as dependent care deductions?

A1. All. Because these expenses are necessary for Judy and John to attend school and go to work, both the costs of the after school program and the amount paid to the neighbor for the care of Sally are allowable as dependent care deductions.

Q2. Tanya Rivera has a child care voucher through EEC for her son Jayden. Jayden is 7 and attends before and after school programs at his elementary school. Her parent co-pay fee for the program is $42.50 per week. The after school program provides bus pick up and drop off just down the street from their apartment. Ms. Rivera does not feel comfortable having Jayden walk home alone and she doesn’t always make it home from work before he is dropped off. Ms. Rivera pays a neighbor $20 a week to meet Jayden at the bus stop and walk him home. Which of these costs are considered allowable?

A2. Both the required costs from EEC and the informal arrangement with Ms. Rivera’s neighbor are eligible.

Q3. Jimmy Carrington pays his mom $50 a week to watch his twin daughters while he attends weekly appointments with his therapists and AA meetings 3 nights per week. Is this eligible as a dependent care expense?

A3. No. Although both formal and informal child care arrangements may be eligible as dependent care expenses, dependent care expenses are only allowable for a household member to be able to accept or continue employment or to attend education or training to prepare for employment.

Q4. Kristin Jennings works long hours at her job. Because she can’t walk her daughter Christina to the bus stop in the morning or pick her up after school, Kristin pays $84 per month for a MBTA LinkPass because the MBTA bus stop is closer to her home than the communal bus stop. She also pays $55 per week for an afterschool program. Which of these costs are considered allowable?

A4. Transportation expenses incurred taking a child(ren) to school are not considered to be allowable dependent care expenses. The expense incurred for the afterschool program is considered allowable however, as it pertains to the care of the child and allows Kristin to continue her employment.

Q5: Kira Stuart’s son, Steven, is 20, disabled, and is enrolled in a special needs program. Steven will be attending high school through the age of 22. Due to her work schedule constraints, Kira pays $75 every two weeks for an afterschool basketball program for Steven. Is this expense allowable?

A5. Yes. Since Steven is disabled, this expense is considered allowable. It is important to remember that some clients requesting dependent care expense deductions for an older child may be confronting particular challenges such as a child with physical or emotional special needs. While generally a sport program would not qualify for the Dependent Care Expense, in this scenario the afterschool sports program is a method opted for by the client to provide afterschool supervision of the dependent.

Q6: Charles Crocker pays $200 every month in daycare costs for his daughter, Liza. Several months ago, Charles lost his job and subsequently applied for Unemployment. His case with DUA has been contentious and his UC claim has been in a pending status for four months. In the interim, Charles has kept Liza in daycare and has been complying with DUA’s job search component during the hours he would normally have been at work. Is Charles’ dependent care expense still considered allowable?

A6. Yes. Since Charles is in need of childcare due to his need to continue his job search, the expense is considered allowable. Once Charles’ UC claim has been approved, this expense will continue to be allowable as DUA requires a job search component as part of their eligibility for benefits. 

Q7. During her application period, Brittany Skinner supplied verifications showing childcare costs for her children: $200 per month for her daughter Stephanie, age 5, $200 per month for her son George, also age 5, and $175 for her one-year old daughter Amanda. Recently, Brittany supplied a statement from the daycare provider reporting a $50 increase per month for each of the children. After being told by a friend that there is a limit on the amount DTA can deduct as dependent care expenses, Brittany called the Assistance Line to ask questions about her increased childcare costs. Are the increases in the costs of care allowable deductions?

A7. Yes. There is no cap limit for dependent care expenses.

Q8. Lawrence Tyson is the grantee of a SNAP-only household and is receiving a TSS Transportation Stipend. Lawrence wishes to claim mileage in addition to his previously verified dependent care expenses for his daughter Livia, 8. Is mileage an allowable dependent care expense for Lawrence?

A8. Yes. Even though Lawrence is receiving a TSS transportation stipend, he is still able to claim mileage as a dependent care expense as the stipend is issued to defray costs associated with travelling to and from a client’s home and place of work, not for dependent care.

Q9. Amy is the grantee of a three person assistance unit that includes her daughter, Lori age 3, and her boyfriend Jason, age 34. Jason is not Lori’s father. Amy is employed full time. Jason is neither employed nor receiving unemployment, and is not enrolled in an education or training program. Amy wishes to claim dependent care expenses as she states she does not have Jason watch Lori, preferring to have Lori in structured daycare. Is this household eligible for dependent care expenses?

A9. Yes, the household is still eligible to claim dependent care expenses, even though the grantee’s boyfriend is at home. The grantee is working and that is an acceptable activity for the dependent care expense deduction. The Department cannot mandate that the boyfriend serve as the child’s daycare provider, nor withhold the deduction under the premise that both adults must be either working, job searching or attending an education/training program in order to receive the deduction. The expense is incurred by the mother and may be credited to her.

Q10. Jim is the grantee of a household of two that includes his 10-year-old son, John. Jim applied for and was approved for SNAP in May, and was placed on Simplified Reporting. In June, Jim reports that he now has to pay $57 per week for his son to attend a summer camp since he now has to work the afternoon shift. Will John have to report the end of the summer camp expense even though he will be outside of the household’s reporting period?

A10. No. Simplified Reporting households are only required to report during case maintenance if their gross income exceeds its maximum monthly gross income limit. John will not be required to report the change until the time of Interim Report.

Q11. Julie filed a SNAP application for herself and her 4-year-old daughter Anne Marie.  Julie is employed and earns $400 per week, but her vehicle is not operating due to being damaged in an accident.  Because of this, Julie must take the Orange Line train to bring her daughter to a babysitter.  On the application, Julie writes that she pays $50 per week to the babysitter for dependent care costs and $55 per week for train tickets to drop Anne Marie off and to pick her up.  Is the written and signed self-declaration enough to credit Julie with $55 per week for transportation costs?

A11. Yes.  Since the transportation costs that Julie declared are not questionable, the written and signed self-declaration is sufficient to credit Julie with $55 per week for dependent-care-related transportation costs, in addition to $50 per week for the dependent care costs.  Had Julie only verbally declared the $55 per week, the self-declaration would be insufficient verification.  Additionally, if the amount that Julie self-declared in writing was questionable (e.g., if the amount exceeded her monthly earned income), documentary evidence of the transportation costs would have to be requested.

Q12. Jeanne filed a SNAP application for herself and her 1-year-old son, Chase.  Jeanne works during the week and her retired mother, Marie, agreed to babysit for Chase free of charge.  Marie lives 10 miles away and babysits Chase on weekdays.  Jeanne drops Chase off at Marie’s house in the morning and picks him up in the evening.  Although Marie does not charge for child care services, can Jeanne be credited with the cost of transportation to and from Marie’s home?

A12. Yes. If the transportation is for the purpose of bringing Chase to a child care provider, Jeanne can receive a dependent care deduction.  Jeanne may verify Marie’s address and the number of trips to Marie’s home by providing a telephonic self-declaration via the telephonic signature line, and you must use a map service such as Google Maps or MapQuest to determine the total mileage. Once you determine the total mileage and calculate the allowable dependent care expense based on the federal mileage rate, you must enter the amount in the appropriate BEACON page and update the narrative (including the details of the telephonic self-declaration). You must also mark the item as verified in the Verifications tab by selecting Other under Documents of Evidence, typing “Telephonic Self-Declaration” in the textbox, and clicking Save.

  Last Update:  May 27, 2021