Child Care in Your Home

Active duty and Guard/Reserve members on active duty must provide both of the following:

• Most recent Leave and Earnings Statement (LES)
• Military orders

Active duty and Guard/Reserve members on active duty must provide both of the following:

• Most recent Leave and Earnings Statement (LES)
• Military orders

A full-time working spouse must provide one of the following that shows you work at least 30 hours per week or 100 hours per month:

• One month or 4 weeks of pay stubs
• If newly employed, a letter from your employer with the date of hire, hours worked per week, and weekly/monthly salary. You will be asked to revalidate your eligibility within 90 days.
• If self-employed, a Certification of Self-Employment form AND a gross earnings statement from your business’s tax information. If you do not have a tax return for the business, you must provide a signed, written estimate of anticipated annual earnings. You can estimate your annual earnings by multiplying your 90-day income by 4.

A full-time student spouse must provide a school schedule that shows you are enrolled at least 12 credit hours in an undergraduate program or 9 credit hours in a graduate program.

• The school schedule must include the student’s name, school name, number of enrolled credits, and start and end date of enrolled classes.
• If your school has nontraditional scheduling (such as a quarter schedule), the documentation must clearly state that you are enrolled full time.
• You will be asked to revalidate your eligibility based on the dates your classes end.
• If you are enrolled in a full-time program (for example, medical/social work or student teaching) where you must complete clinical hours toward your degree/certification, you must provide documentation verifying that your clinical schedule meets or exceeds the required number of working hours to participate in CCYH. This official documentation must be verified each semester.

A part-time working and part-time student spouse must provide both of the following:

• Documentation that shows you work on a regularly scheduled basis, typically for fewer than 6 hours per day and fewer than 4 days per week. See the requirements for a full-time working spouse for examples of acceptable documentation.
• A school schedule that shows you are enrolled at least 6 credit hours in an undergraduate program or 3 credit hours in a graduate program. See the requirements for a full-time student spouse for examples of acceptable documentation.

Your fee assistance benefit depends on the rate your provider charges, your Total Family Income (TFI), and whether you live in a high cost area. The benefit amount is the difference between your provider’s rate or the provider cap—whichever is less—and your parent fee. The program will pay your chosen provider directly.

You must pay your provider for costs the fee assistance doesn’t cover, including taxes and fees for more than 60 hours of care weekly. Provider rates may only include child care services and may not include housekeeping-related duties outside of what is necessary for child care.

To determine what you will pay for child care each month:

1. First, determine your parent fee and provider cap.
   • DoD sets the parent fee per child for each TFI category.
   • DoD sets provider caps for basic and high cost areas. If your provider charges more than the cap, then you must pay the parent fee plus any amount above the cap.
   • DoD assigns you to a TFI category based on your TFI. Refer to the TFI Tip Sheet for guidance on what income to include when calculating your TFI. Review the FY24 CCYH Parent Fees document to determine your parent fee and provider cap for each child.
2. Next, determine your provider’s monthly rate.
   • If your provider charges a weekly rate, multiply that amount by 4.33 to get the monthly rate.
3. Subtract the parent fee from the provider rate or the provider cap—whichever is less. This is your benefit amount for each child.

EXAMPLE 1: FULL-TIME CARE IN A BASIC AREA
TFI: $150,000
TFI category: X
Parent fee for full-time care in a basic area: $846 per child per month
Provider cap for full-time care: $1,800 per child per month
Provider rate: $1,650 per month (below the provider cap)
Benefit amount: $1,650 (provider rate) - $846 (parent fee) = $804 per child per month
Parent responsibility: $846 per child per month (same as the parent fee because the provider rate is less than the provider cap)

EXAMPLE 2: FULL-TIME CARE IN A HIGH COST AREA
TFI: $110,000
TFI category: VII
Parent fee for full-time care in a high cost area: $620 per child per month
Provider cap for full-time care: $1,800 per child per month
Provider rate: $2,500 per month ($700 above provider cap)
Benefit amount: $1,800 (provider cap) - $620 (parent fee) = $1,180 per child per month
Parent responsibility: $620 (parent fee) + $700 (provider fee above cap) = $1,320 per child per month (more than the parent fee because the provider rate is more than the provider cap)

In the CCYH program, you will be considered your provider's employer. To learn about the tax implications of being an employer, contact Military OneSource tax consultants. You can also read the Tax Considerations for Household Employers fact sheet.

The CCYH program allows the following in-home care arrangements:

• A provider cares for your children in your home.
• Two or more families share an in-home provider. The families share the cost of the provider. The families must develop their own nanny share agreement and comply with any state or local regulations.
• The provider lives with the family while providing care. Fee assistance covers only child care, not living expenses.
• The provider cares for your children and their own children in your home with a written agreement.

Note: For the health, safety, and well-being of the children in care, the child care ratio may not exceed six children to one adult. This may include no more than two infants under the age of two or children considered nonmobile or nonambulatory. When local or state requirements are more stringent for child care, then the family must follow their local or state regulations outlining the child to adult child care ratios.

You are responsible for finding your own in-home child care provider. To find a provider, you may use the free child care search service through Military OneSource.

A CCYH provider must meet the following requirements:

• Be a US citizen or lawful permanent resident
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Have a high school diploma or equivalent
• Read, speak, and write English
• Follow applicable federal and state labor laws, including income tax regulations
• Attend a virtual orientation session
• Have current infant/child (pediatric) first aid and CPR certification
• Complete all required training
• Pass background checks

A CCYH provider may be a family member. A parent, stepparent, or legal guardian cannot be the CCYH provider for their child.

A CCYH specialist will guide your chosen provider through the background check process. Your provider must pass the following background checks:

• Fingerprint-based FBI criminal history background check*
• State criminal history repository check
• State child abuse and neglect repository check
• State/national sex offender registry check

* After your provider passes the fingerprint-based FBI background check, they may be temporarily (provisionally) approved for the CCYH program if they have also completed the following:

• Submitted supporting documentation for state background checks
• Submitted proof of first aid and CPR certification
• Completed the initial training and passed the assessment
• Submitted payment information

To receive full approval, your provider must pass remaining background checks and complete the 90-day training and pass assessment 2. If they don’t meet these requirements within 90 days, the family will be responsible for the full provider child care fee.

A CCYH specialist will guide your chosen provider through the provider training requirements. Before your provider can receive any fee assistance payments, they must complete initial training courses and pass assessment 1. Within 90 days of fee assistance approval, they must complete the 90-day training courses and pass assessment 2. Your provider must also complete annual training.

Note: If your child has a special need, it is important that you share best care practices with your provider to ensure your child's needs are met.

You will be your provider's employer, so having a written contract with them is important. The contract must include the following information for each child who will receive care:

• Name and date of birth
• Start date of care
• Provider rate per month or week
• Days and hours of care per week or month

For more information about creating your contract, see The Importance of Creating Your Child Care Contract handout. You will provide a copy of the contract to your CCYH specialist.