Taking a child to daycare can have a direct effect on the Income Tax declaration. The maternity deduction can increase by up to 1,000 euros additional per year for each child when certain custody expenses have been paid at a daycare or authorized early childhood education center.
This increase, commonly known as "daycare voucher", is not a benefit that the Tax Agency automatically deposits nor an independent benefit. It is an increase in the maternity deduction that applies in the Personal Income Tax.
Who can apply for the daycare voucher
The first requirement is to be entitled to the maternity deduction.
Since 2023, women with children under three years old who are entitled to the minimum for dependents and who at the time of birth receive a contributory or assistance unemployment benefit, or are registered with Social Security or a mutual insurance at that time or later, accumulating in this last case at least 30 days of contributions, can benefit, among other situations.
In addition, there is a specific requirement: having paid custody expenses for a child under three years old at a daycare or authorized early childhood education center.
Following the rulings of the Supreme Court in 2024, the Tax Agency also accepts daycares that have the necessary authorization for the opening and operation of the activity, even if they do not have the educational authorization specifically required for early childhood education centers.
What daycare expenses can be included
Not everything that is paid related to the childcare center generates the right to the increase. The Tax Agency considers custody expenses:
- Pre-registration and enrollment.
- Attendance during general hours.
- Attendance during extended hours.
- Food.
As a general rule, they must correspond to full months and cannot be amounts considered exempt work income in kind.
In addition, to calculate the effective expense, the part that has been subsidized is deducted.
How much can be deducted
The maximum is 1,000 euros additional per year per child, but that does not mean that all families can automatically deduct that amount.
The increase cannot exceed the effective unsubsidized expense paid during the year to the daycare or early childhood center. To calculate that expense, both what was paid by the person entitled to the deduction and what was paid by the other parent are taken into account.
For example, if a family meets all the requirements and has incurred 2,400 euros of valid expenses throughout the computable period, they will be able to reach the maximum of 1,000 euros.
If the effective expenses that can be computed were only 700 euros, the increase could not exceed those 700 euros.
It can also be proportionally reduced by the number of months that generate entitlement. The Tax Agency itself uses an example in which six complete months allow applying 500 euros: 1,000 divided by 12 and multiplied by six.
What happens when the child turns three years old
There is an important exception. The benefit does not necessarily disappear on the day the child turns three years old.
During the fiscal year in which they reach that age, expenses incurred after the birthday can also be computed until the month prior to the one in which the second cycle of Early Childhood Education can begin.
Can the 1,000 euros be collected every month?
No. This is a fundamental difference compared to the general maternity deduction.
The maternity deduction can be collected in advance when the requirements are met, but the up to 1,000 additional euros for daycare cannot be requested through advance payment.
The corresponding increase must be made effective in the annual income tax return.
The daycare centers and authorized centers also have information obligations to the Tax Agency through form 233, which allows the Tax Agency to have information about the minors and the expenses declared by the centers.