Tax deductable childcare for all working parents

[eleusis]

I think the income which one spends on childcare in order to go to work ought to be tax free. So, if I earn £35,000 and spend £12,500 paying my nanny, childminder, or nursery fees, then I should pay income tax on £22,500 that year.

Do you agree?

yes

hmm in theory yes - but then in areas where childcare is cheaper then parents earn the same £35,000 as you would be taxed more than you......and is that fair?

And what of those of us where both partners work (I work 28hrs a week, DH 37.5hrs a week) BUT we don't pay for childcare as we work 'opposite' shifts - we would end up paying tax on all of it - while another household that has the same income but pays for childcare would pay less

But if you work part-time and have childcare to cover not only your working hours but also for example 2 trips to the gym each week, how would this be administered to stop such abuse of the "tax deductible childcare for WORKING parents".

It would be a nightmare to administer to stop potential abuse for tax deductible childcare during extra "me time"

Fanny annie, yes they'd pay less tax but they'd still be actually paying the childcare costs so they'd still have less disposable income than you and yourt dh.

Tax relief on childcare costs would mean 22% or 40% saving on the actual childcare costs (ignoring National Insurance).

The childcare costs would be deductible from income (reducing the tax payable) not deductible from your actual tax payable.

I think that everyone should be given equal treatment

So if you choose to stay at home then your partner should get a tax credit to make up for the lack of income, effectively to pay your salary as the child carer.

If you choose to work then you should get a similar deduction to pay the child carer.

I think it would have to be the same amount per child though, it would be impossible to administer. Maybe with an adjustment for the area in which you live (ie how expensive childcare is in your area)

yes but why should parents who earn £24k a year - and pay for no childcare as they somehow juggle it between the two of them - pay more in tax than parents who earn the same amount but do pay for childcare???

Well maybe this way one of them could afford not to work! Then no juggling

They can easily find out your work hours. If you are working 10 hours a week and putting in for a tax deduction on 40 hours worth of childcare,then yes, you should not get away with that.

I think this should be for families where both parents are at work and therefore require childcare. Or, of course, single parents who work should get it.

Hmmm, the shift thing is interesting. Perhaps if you could deduct your tax from your childcare, then you wouldn't have to work opposite shifts, and could see each other more.

Yes, but some of us don't want to put our children in a nursery, but prefer to look after them ourselves.

CD what would you propose would be the salary for the SAHP?

well that is crapola

In my last co we all recorded 7.5 hours a day regardless of how long we worked!

People often work 12 +++ hour days for urgent stuff outside their contracted hours

that doesn't work though CD.

We earn (roughly) £24k a year - 98% of that income is 'essential' for bills, food, running the car etc.

We pay £0 in childcare.

If I stopped working our income would drop to £16k a year - and we STILL wouldn't need childcare......so DH would still be taxed on his £16k and we wouldn't have enough money to live.........

Quite expat
my idea would allow for that

Oh god I have no idea
As I said it would be a fixed amount per child, I can't see how you could make it fair otherwise

but fannyannie YOU would be providing the childcare

"
So if you choose to stay at home then your partner should get a tax credit to make up for the lack of income, effectively to pay your salary as the child carer." is what I said

yes, the system would be so easy to abuse and hellish to administer - can you imagine the inflated childcare costs to get more tax deductions, fake childcarers etc. etc. (which is why cd's suggestion is better but I imagine if they introduced that, they would abolish child benefit and all the other related tax credit systems)

BTW, CD, tis me Uwila. Got bored and changed my name.

knew it!

yes i gathere that elephantitis or whatever you are called now

fio what do you do for work?

but we both provide the childcare - and apart from once a fortnight when I do my 2 nights in a row at the weekend we actually see each other as much as if I wasn't working.......and the tax credits would'n't be enough to cover the money I bring in......I know as that's why I started working our income is greater now with me working and us still getting some Tax Credits than if it was just him working

my dh works mon to fri

i work sat and sundays

therefore no childcare

but because we choose to do this so we can bring up the dds ourselves we should pay full whack tax? ie get taxed on our entire salaries

unfair

I asked as I'd like a job evenings and I wondered what to do

I already work sundays in a shop

what hours do you do in the evenings?