Advice for Providers

+ Q1. How do I know if my setting qualifies for the subsidy scheme?

The subsidy is offered by all registered childcare providers that are signed up to the TFC scheme and can register a child below primary school age. This includes nurseries, playgroups and childminders. It does not apply to unregistered or informal childcare arrangements.

+ Q2. We are a primary school who offers afterschool programmes, are we eligible?

Guidance from HMRC confirms that, in addition to childcare, supervised activities delivered outside of compulsory education (such as breakfast clubs, afterschool activities and holiday schemes) may qualify for Tax Free Childcare. These activities will also qualify for the subsidy subject to registration.

+ Q3. We are a primary school who offers afterschool programmes, do we need to register with the Health and Social Care Trust to be eligible for Tax Free Childcare?

In Northern Ireland, if the supervised activities are leisure, recreational or enrichment activities and delivered in schools they may also be exempt from Health and Social Care Trust (HSCT) registration, provided they:

• Are enrichment-focussed and linked to curriculum;
• Are delivered under school oversight (including third party delivery);
• Are not promoted as general childcare; and
• Are only available to pupils enrolled at the school.

Therefore, if your school operates supervised activities such as breakfast clubs or after school programmes (not general childcare), you may be able to register for TFC without registering with your local HSCT.

+ Q4. Is there a maximum amount that can be claimed under the subsidy scheme?

Yes. The maximum amount that can be claimed per child under the subsidy scheme is £184 per child, per month for claims up to March 2026. From 1st April 2026, the discount cap is increasing to £203.

+ Q5. Does the cap apply to the childcare costs of children with a disability?

A child with a disability may be able to claim up to £4,400 under the NICSS. What this means is that the monthly cap under the NICSS will be £367 a month for this child rather than £184. Evidence must be provided to confirm that the child is eligible for the higher level rate of TFC.

The cap will increase to £406 from April 2026.

+ Q6. How to identify a Tax-Free Childcare payment

When a parent pays you using their childcare account, the transaction will appear on your bank statement as NATIONAL SAVINGS AND INVESTMENTS. This entry should also contain the child's:

• Childcare reference number made up of four letters and five numbers. The letters are the first initial and the first three letters of the child's surname. For example, AJON12345.

• Tax-Free Childcare account number. This will be thirteen digits long and start with 1100, and should contain the letters TFC. For example, TFC 1100012345678

If your bank displays payment information differently and you are unable to identify a parent's payment, you can submit a payment reconciliation form or call the childcare service helpline: 03001234097

+ Q7. Are NICSS payments made to registered childminders who claim Universal Credit treated as income?

Yes. Childminders in receipt of Childcare Subsidy Scheme payments who also receive Universal Credit must declare these payments as income in every Universal Credit assessment period in which it is paid. They can report this income using their Universal Credit online account or by phoning the Universal Credit Service Centre

+ Q8. Do registered childminders have to declare the upfront and monthly administration payments as income on their Universal Credit claim?

Universal Credit customers working as self-employed registered childminders will need to declare both the upfront and monthly administration payments as income in the Assessment Period during which they were received. However, it should be noted that both the upfront and the ongoing monthly administration payments are also an allowable expense under Universal Credit. The full amounts of these payments should therefore be declared as both income and expenses in the same Assessment Period during which the payments were received. The NICSS subsidy payments made to childcare providers for the childcare provided are not an allowable expense and must only be declared as income.

+ Q9. Is income from the NICSS taxable?

Yes

+ Q10. Are deposits eligible and applicable for NICSS?

No - A refundable deposit is not covered under the NICSS Scheme. A deposit line can appear on an invoice, but the subsidy cannot be applied to the deposit amount.

+ Q11. What happens if a I am off sick and unable to provide care but have already billed in advance?

A process will be in place for you to amend a claim if the anticipated level of childcare has not been provided. Where possible, we will not require a refund to be made but will make an adjustment to subsequent claims.

+ Q12. I charge a reduced fee when on holiday, can I still apply a discount to this invoice?

Yes. The scheme is aimed at reducing parental bills so pre-established holiday payment commitments are eligible within this scheme.

+ Q13. Can we include the discount on to ad-hoc activities and services, or does this need to be invoiced separately to the parent?

The NICSS will provide a 15% subsidy on all childcare costs that are normally covered by the Tax Free Childcare Subsidy.

+ Q14. One child receives a family discount, do I apply the 15% NICSS discount after the sibling discount is applied?

Please apply the 15% discount to the fee you normally charge the parents, that is, to the sum after the sibling discount is applied.

+ Q15. I normally invoice families together on one invoice, can I still do this?

Yes, however for the children eligible for NICSS, you need to clearly state: Name of Child, Tax free Childcare Number, Amount prior to reduction, 15% reduction amount, New amount payable by parents.

+ Q16. A parent has informed me that they are digitally exempt and do not use the online Tax Free Childcare service, what should I do?

We are aware of these cases and have set up a process for these parents, i.e we allocate a TFC number that can be tracked on our system.

They will still need to register on the portal, but if you ask them to contact nicssparent@early-years.org, we will allocate them a number so they can complete registration.

+ Q17. A child’s Tax free Childcare expiry date has now passed, what should I do?

Parents will be required to update their Expiry Date as part of a review process, which will be conducted by Early Years early in 2025.

+ Q18. A child in my setting is no loner eligible for Tax Free Childcare, what should I do?

The parent is responsible for letting the childcare provider know if they are no longer eligible for Tax Free Childcare. If a parent has been in contact with you, you should contact the NICSS Team (nicssprovider@early-years.org) to let them know the child is no longer eligible, including the Child Application Number and TFC Number. The Child Application will then be closed, and you will no longer have access to this on your system.

+ Q19. Is the information about fees visible to parents. What if we decide to change our prices?

Fees will not be made visible to parents. Participating providers must inform Early Years of changed fees/rates.

+ Q20. What will be done with the data that providers upload to the NICSS portal?

The data requested will be used to process claims, monitor scheme activity and assess its impact. The NICSS is the first step in delivering a comprehensive Early Learning and Childcare Strategy for Northern Ireland and the data collected as part of this scheme will be aggregated and used for statistical purposes to inform the future development of the NICSS and this wider work.

+ Q21. We run a number of groups on different sites. Will I have a different account for each site or will they be connected to the same one?

If you have separate childcare provider registrations for each site, then yes you will need a different account - each with a unique email address.

+ Q22. When I try to login to the secure online portal, I am prompted for a verification code. When I enter the code that I receive by email it is not accepted.

Close your browser windows and click on the original login link again and this will prompt you for a 1 time verification code. Wait for a new code to come through. Do not use any previously issued codes at this point. Ensure there are no spaces before or after the code. When you enter your verification code there is an option to "remember this device" so you do not have to repeat the process for 30 days.

+ Q23. I need to change some of the information I added to the system and it won't allow me to amend - what should I do?

Please make us aware of this by emailing nicssprovider@early-years.org and we will respond as soon as possible.

+ Q24. I have added my personal email/mobile onto this registration form - is it only Early Years that can access this information?

Yes - this information will ONLY be used for the purposes of processing your registration.

+ Q25. There are some claims on my portal showing as ‘Not Eligible’, what does this mean?

These claims are not yet submitted and require attention, this is usually because not all mandatory fields have been completed. You should log back into your account to review these claim records, make the necessary amendments and ‘Submit’.

+ Q26. There is a claim on my portal that I do not need, as the child has since left my setting. How can I remove this?

Please get in touch with the NICSS Team (nicssprovider@early-years.org) or your allocated Grants Officer, to let them know which Claim / s you would like to remove from your portal.