Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and
Legislative Issues
Janemarie Mulvey
Specialist in Aging and Income Security
Christine Scott
Specialist in Social Policy
January 7, 2011
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RS21466
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
Summary
In the 2000 census, for more than 60% of the households with children under the age of six, all
parents in the household worked. Some private surveys show that nearly 40% of those caring for
aging parents and older individuals worked. For families, care for young children and older
individuals who are physically or mentally unable to care for themselves is critical to maintaining
participation in the workforce. To assist these families, current law provides two tax benefits
related to dependent care: the dependent care credit and the exclusion from income for employer-
provided dependent care assistance programs. Both provisions are for employment-related
expenses for the care of dependents under the age of 13, or dependents (or a spouse) who are
physically or mentally incapable of caring for themselves.
Some of the current tax provisions that were expanded in 2001 are set to expire December 31,
2012. These changes include
• increasing the maximum credit rate for the DCTC from 30% to 35%;
• increasing the income level at which the credit rate for the DCTC phases down
from $10,000 to $15,000; and
• increasing the maximum amount of qualifying expenses from $2,400 to $3,000
for one child and from $4,800 to $6,000 for two or more children.
This report discusses current tax treatment of dependent care expenses under the dependent care
tax credit (DCTC) and the dependent care assistance programs (DCAP); and issues for Congress
in expanding tax benefits for working caregivers (including the Obama-Biden proposal).
This report will be updated as legislative activity warrants.
Congressional Research Service
Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1
Current Tax Benefits for Dependent Care .................................................................................... 1
Qualified Employment-Related Expenses.............................................................................. 1
Definition of Qualified Dependent ........................................................................................ 2
Dependent Care Credit .......................................................................................................... 3
Employer-Provided Dependent Care Assistance Programs..................................................... 5
Interaction Between the DCTC and the DCAP ...................................................................... 6
Issues for Congress ..................................................................................................................... 6
Expiring Provisions............................................................................................................... 7
Expand Definition of Care Recipient ..................................................................................... 7
Increase the Amount of Work-Related Expenses that Are Deductible or Credited................... 7
Expand the Credit to Allow More Lower-Income Caregivers to Participate........................... 9
Tables
Table 1. Maximum Dependent Care Tax Credit by Level of Income ............................................ 4
Table 2. Utilization of the DCTC by Adjusted Gross Income Tax Year 2008 ............................... 5
Table 3. Maximum Dependent Care Tax Credit Under Obama-Biden Proposal ............................ 8
Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 10
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Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
Introduction
The demographics of the workforce has changed considerably in the past few decades, as has the
nature of caregiving responsibilities. Not only has the share of women working increased
considerably over the past three decades, but the overall workforce has aged. While many
workers today still care for children, they are also increasingly more likely to be caring for aging
parents.
To address dependent care costs for working caregivers, there are two current law tax provisions
for dependent care: the dependent care tax credit (DCTC) and the exclusion from income for
employer-provided dependent care assistance programs (DCAP). Some of the tax provisions for
dependent care tax provisions are also expected to expire (not be in effect) after December 31,
2012. In addressing the expiration of these provisions, Congress may also consider whether to
expand these tax incentives even more for working caregivers. The importance of this issue is
underscored by the expansion of dependent care tax incentives in President Obama’s Legislative
Agenda1 through the White House Middle Class Task Force chaired by Vice President Biden,
which includes as one of its goals to improve work and family balance.
This report discusses the following:
• current tax treatment of dependent care expenses under the DCTC and the
DCAP; and
• issues for Congress in expanding tax benefits for working caregivers.
Current Tax Benefits for Dependent Care
Under current law, there are two dependent care tax provisions targeted toward working
caregivers: the DCTC is a tax credit and the DCAP is an exclusion from income for employer-
provided dependent care assistance programs. These tax provisions are similar in that they both
use the same definition of qualified employment-related expenses and qualifying dependent
(discussed below). They differ, however, in how each affects tax liability by income category. The
DCTC is a nonrefundable tax credit for qualified dependent care expenses and directly offsets tax
liability dollar-for-dollar for working caregivers with a positive tax liability. The DCAP, on the
other hand, is an income exclusion where the value of the tax benefit depends on a household’s
marginal tax rate. The DCAP is available to working caregivers whose employer offers it as a
benefit. Working caregivers can only use one of these options. Both the DCTC and the DCAP
rely on the same definitions of qualified employment-related expenses and qualifying dependents.
This section discusses these issues in greater detail.
Qualified Employment-Related Expenses
Qualified employment-related expenses are defined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as
those expenses for household services and care of a qualifying dependent necessary for the
taxpayer to work or to look for work. A taxpayer’s work can be for others or in their own business
1 See http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/Fact_Sheet-Middle_Class_Task_Force.pdf.
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Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
or partnership and can be either full time or part time. Work also includes actively looking for
work, but a taxpayer must have earned income to qualify in a given year.
The following are considered qualified employment-related expenses:
• Cost of care provided outside of one’s home if the care is for a qualifying person
who regularly spends at least 8 hours each day in his or her (i.e., taxpayer’s)
home.
• Care provided by a dependent care center is eligible only if the center complies
with all state and local regulations.2
• Costs for transportation by a care provider to and from a dependent care center
provided for a qualifying person (e.g., bus, subway, taxi, or private car) are also
eligible. However, the transportation cost of the care provider coming to a
working caregiver’s home is not included.
• Fees and deposits paid to an agency to obtain the services of a care provider are
included.
• Expenses paid for household services also meet the work-related expense test if
they are at least partly for the well-being and protection of a qualifying person.
Household services include ordinary and usual services done in and around your
home that are necessary to run your home, and include services of a housekeeper,
maid, or cook. However, they do not include the services of a chauffer, bartender,
or gardener.
Expenses that cannot be included in this category include food, lodging, clothing, education, and
entertainment. A family may pay either a private individual or a dependent care center for
dependent care. A dependent care center is a facility that provides care for more than six
individuals who are not residents and receives a fee or other payment for providing those
services. Thus, costs of institutional care in a nursing home or assisted living facility are not
included. However, payments to a dependent care center are qualified expenses only if the center
meets all applicable state and local laws and regulations. However, a taxpayer can include small
amounts paid for these items if they are incident to and cannot be separated from the cost of
caring for the qualifying person. Qualified expenses do not include payments to a child of the
taxpayer under the age of 19, or payments to an individual the taxpayer can claim as a dependent
for the personal exemption.
Definition of Qualified Dependent
The Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-311) changed the definition of a
qualifying dependent beginning in tax year 2005 to conform with changes made to the personal
exemption for a more uniform definition of a child.
Qualified employment-related expenses are those expenses for household services and care of a
qualifying dependent necessary for the taxpayer to be employed. For the purposes of qualified
employment-related expenses, a qualifying dependent is a
2 A dependent care center is a place that provides care for more than six person and receives a fee, payment, or grant
for providing services of any of those persons, even if the center is not run for profit.
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Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
• qualifying child of the taxpayer (as defined for the personal exemption) who is
less than 13 years of age, and for whom the taxpayer can claim a personal
exemption;
• dependent of the taxpayer who is physically or mentally incapable of providing
self care, and who has lived with the taxpayer for at least half the tax year; or
• spouse of the taxpayer who is physically or mentally incapable of providing self
care and who has lived with the taxpayer for at least half the tax year.
Dependent Care Credit
The DCTC is calculated as a percentage (as high as 35%) of qualified employment-related
expenses for qualifying dependents.
The qualified employment-related expenses for the DCTC, beginning in tax year 2003, are actual
expenses capped at $3,000 for one dependent and $6,000 for two or more dependents. If the
taxpayer has two or more children, the $6,000 need not reflect $3,000 per child. The per child
allocation does not matter as long as part of the $6,000 is spent on each child. The Economic
Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA; P.L. 107-16) raised the expense
limits from $2,400 for one child and $4,800 for two or more children, and increased the credit
percentage from 30% to 35%, beginning in tax year 2003. EGTRRA also increased the income
level at which the credit rate begins to phase down resulting in a higher credit rate for incomes
between $10,000 and $43,000. The EGTRRA increases will sunset at the end of 2012, and the
DCTC will revert to tax year 2001 levels.3
For married taxpayers, the qualified expenses are also limited to the lesser of the taxpayer’s or
spouse’s earned income. If the spouse is a full-time student or incapable of providing self care,
they are often not employed and earning income. A special rule exists for this situation. Each
month that the spouse is a full-time student or incapable of providing self care, the spouse’s
income for purposes of calculating the credit is assumed to be $250 for one child, and $500 for
two or more children. If the spouse is a full-time student all year, this results in an income for
purposes of the credit equal to qualified expense limitations of $3,000 for one child and $6,000
for two or more children.
Married taxpayers must generally file a joint return to take the DCTC, but special rules exist for
couples who are legally separated or living apart. The 35% rate is reduced by 1% point for each
$2,000 (or fraction thereof) by which income exceeds $15,000, but the rate is not reduced below
20%. As shown in Table 1, the credit is 20% at incomes above $43,000.
3 These provisions were initially scheduled to expire December 31, 2010, and were extended to December 31, 2012, by
the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-312).
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Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
Table 1. Maximum Dependent Care Tax Credit by Level of Income
Adjusted Gross
Maximum Credit Based on Number of
Income
Qualifying Individuals
One
Two or More
But Not
Applicable
($3,000 in qualified
($6,000 in qualified
Over
Over
Credit Rate
expenses)
expenses)
$0
$15,000
0.35
$1,050
$2,100
15,000
17,000
0.34
1,020
2,040
17,000
19,000
0.33
990
1,980
19,000
21,000
0.32
960
1,920
21,000
23,000
0.31
930
1,860
23,000
25,000
0.30
900
1,800
25,000
27,000
0.29
870
1,740
27,000
29,000
0.28
840
1,680
29,000
31,000
0.27
810
1,620
31,000
33,000
0.26
780
1,560
33,000
35,000
0.25
750
1,500
35,000
37,000
0.24
720
1,440
37,000
39,000
0.23
690
1,380
39,000
41,000
0.22
660
1,320
41,000
43,000
0.21
630
1,260
43,000
No limit
0.20
600
1,200
Source: Table prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
On the tax form, the DCTC is one of several nonrefundable tax credits4 taken against the sum of
regular and alternative minimum tax liability. In tax year 2008, a total of 6.6 million returns used
the DCTC for a total credit of $3.5 billion.5 The nonrefundable nature of the credit results in
many lower-income taxpayers not being able to fully utilize the credit. For example, in tax year
2008, working caregivers with adjusted gross income (AGI) under $15,000 would not likely be
able to take the DCTC because they do not have sufficient tax liability to offset with the credit. As
shown in Table 2, more than 50% of DCTC is claimed by households with AGI over $50,000.
4 Other nonrefundable credits include those for education, retirement savings, adoption, and the child credit (which is
refundable for certain taxpayers).
5 Internal Revenue Service, Individual Complete Report (Publication 1304), Table 3.3, available at http://www.irs.gov/
pub/irs-soi/08in33ar.xls.
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Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
Table 2. Utilization of the DCTC by Adjusted Gross Income
Tax Year 2008
Adjusted
Percent of
Gross
Returns
Share of
Income
Claiming the
Average
Total DCTC
DCTC
DCTC
Claimed
No AGI
0.0%
$0
0.0%
$1 up to
0.1% $175 0.1%
$15,000
$15,000 up to
2.7% $384 6.2%
$25,000
$25,000 up to
4.9% $622
20.3%
$40,000
$40,000 up to
5.5% $546 9.4%
$50,000
$50,000 up to
6.8% $520
19.3%
$75,000
$75,000 up to
9.5% $540
17.0%
$100,000
$100,000 up
10.8% $539 22.7%
to $200,000
$200,000+ 7.5% $528
4.9%
Al Taxpayers
4.7%
$535
100%
Source: Table prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) using data from IRS Data from Individual
Complete Report (Publication 1304).
Employer-Provided Dependent Care Assistance Programs
A taxpayer can exclude from income up to $5,000 paid or incurred by an employer for qualified
dependent care expenses under an employer-provided DCAP. The DCAP definitions for qualified
dependent care expenses and qualified dependent are the same definitions as for the DCTC. An
employer can provide direct payment to child care and adult day care providers, provide on-site
child care, or reimburse parents for child care they obtain. Similar to the DCTC, payments made
to a dependent of the taxpayer or a child of the taxpayer under the age of 19 are not excluded
from income.
These arrangements are often funded through salary reduction agreements. Under a salary
reduction agreement, the employee agrees that a specified amount be set aside for the employer’s
DCAP.6 The employer DCAP must be a written plan meeting certain rules for nondiscrimination
among employees, but need not be funded by the employer. By using a salary reduction, an
employee receives the benefit of the income exclusion during the tax year rather than at year’s
end.
6 The plan will then reimburse the employee from the set aside amount (employee contributions) for dependent care
expenses. This type of arrangement is also known as a flexible spending arrangement or flexible spending account, and
is often offered as part of a cafeteria benefit plan, in which employees may choose from one or more taxable or
nontaxable benefits.
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The tax benefit from a DCAP depends on the marginal tax rate of the working caregiver and the
amount that the working caregiver allocates to the DCAP each year. The marginal tax rate is
defined as the tax rate on the last dollar that the person earned that year and increases with
income. Higher tax benefits from the DCAP accrue to individuals with higher marginal tax rates.
Although the working caregiver also does not pay employment taxes (i.e., Social Security and
Medicare payroll taxes) on the amount he or she contributes to the DCAP, these taxes generally
do not vary by income.7 Thus, higher-income individuals receive a higher DCAP tax benefit than
middle- and lower-income individuals.
According to a Mercer survey, 24% of small employers (10 to 499 employees) and 83% of large
employers (500+ employees) offered a DCAP to their employees in 2009. The average
contribution to a DCAP was about $3,050, which is lower than the $5,000 maximum allowed
under current law.8 This difference may reflect the “use or lose” nature of the funds and changes
in employment (for example, if an employee changes jobs from one employer who offers a DCAP
to another who does not).9 Funds for dependent care expenses not used by the end of the year
revert back to the employer.10 The Mercer survey found that an average of 1% of funds are
forfeited under the use or lose rules.
Interaction Between the DCTC and the DCAP
Although both provisions use the same definition of employment-related expenses, the same
expenses cannot be used for both the DCTC and DCAP. Taxpayers must choose between the two
tax provisions for the same qualified dependent care expenses. For taxpayers in tax brackets
higher than the DCTC credit rate, the DCAP using a salary reduction arrangement is more
advantageous. However, because the DCTC has a higher limit ($6,000) in the case of two or more
children, a higher-income taxpayer may use up to $5,000 in a DCAP with a salary reduction, and
use $1,000 of taxpayer paid employment-related expenses for the DCTC.
Issues for Congress
A key issue Congress may consider is expiring provisions relating to the maximum credit rate, the
maximum amount of the qualifying expenses, as well as other provisions relating to the
integration of the dependent care tax credit with other areas of the tax code (such as EITC and
AMT). In doing this, Congress may also look at whether these provisions are adequately
addressing the costs for working caregivers. This issue is also at the forefront of President Obama
and Vice President Biden’s Initiatives for Middle-Class Families. Included in their blueprint is a
proposal to double the child and dependent care tax credit.
In addition to addressing the expiration of a number of provisions, some areas Congress may look
at for expansion include the following:
7 The one exception is for workers whose wages exceed the maximum amount subject to the Social Security payroll tax
in which case there is no Social Security payroll tax savings.
8 Mercer Human Resource Consulting, National Survey of Employer Sponsored Health Plans, released July 2010.
9 Employers at their discretion may extend the deadline for using unspent balances up to 2½ months after the end of the
plan year.
10 See CRS Report RL32656, Health Care Flexible Spending Accounts, by Janemarie Mulvey.
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• Expand the definition of dependent to include care recipient populations that are
not otherwise included under current law.
• Increase the amount of work-related expenses that are used for calculating the
DCTC or DCAP formula.
• Expand the benefit to allow more lower-income caregivers to participate.
The following includes greater detail on each of these options.
Expiring Provisions
A number of provisions for dependent care are set to expire (not be in effect) after December 31,
2012.11 Initially provisions authorized by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation
Act of 2001 (EGTRRA; P.L. 107-16) were set to expire on December 31, 2010, but they were
recently extended to December 31, 2012, through the Tax Relief Unemployment Insurance
Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-312). Changes that are set to expire
include
• increasing the maximum credit rate for the DCTC from 30% to 35%;
• increasing the income level at which the credit rate for the DCTC phases down
from $10,000 to $15,000; and
• increasing the maximum amount of qualifying expenses from $2,400 to $3,000
for one child, and from $4,800 to $6,000 for two or more children.
Expand Definition of Care Recipient
One area for expansion relates to the definition of dependent who is the care recipient.
Specifically, there has been interest to expand the definition to include aging parents or relatives
or other care recipients who may not be living with the care provider.
As noted earlier, one key requirement for a dependent to be covered is that the care recipient must
be physically or mentally incapable of caring for himself or herself, and he or she must live with
the working caregiver for more than half the year. One of the key issues in expanding the
definition of “dependent” is that the second criterion that requires the expenses to be work-related
would still have to be met. It may be difficult to prove that expenses for someone currently not
living with a working caregiver meet this IRS criteria discussed earlier.
Increase the Amount of Work-Related Expenses that Are
Deductible or Credited
Neither the DCTC or DCAP maximum allowable amounts have been indexed for inflation, and
survey data indicate that dependent care cost may far exceed existing thresholds. A recent survey
11The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA; P.L. 107-16) provisions were set to
expire on December 31, 2010, and the Tax Relief Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of
2010 (P.L. 111-312) extended these provisions in EGTRRA to December 31, 2012.
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Dependent Care: Current Tax Benefits and Legislative Issues
from the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies found that the
average annual cost of care for an infant in a center in 2009 ranged from more than $4,550 in
Mississippi to more than $18,750 in Massachusetts. For a four-year-old, the average cost of care
ranged from more than $4,050 in Mississippi to more than $13,150 in Massachusetts in 2009.
Parents of school-age children paid more than $1,800 in Mississippi to more than $9,400 in New
York.12 Among older care recipients, eldercare costs are also expensive. The annual cost of adult
day care averages $14,400 a year.13 Thus, the current amount of work-related expenses that are
allowed as a deduction through a DCAP of $5,000 or taken as a tax credit through the DCTC
(from $3,000 to $6,000 depending on number of children) may not be sufficient to adequately
cover eligible expenses for working caregivers.
To increase the amount of the work-related expenses that are subject to either a deduction or a
credit, one direct approach is to increase the maximum thresholds for both the DCTC and the
DCAP.
Another way to indirectly affect the amount of the available credit under the DCTC is to modify
the applicable credit rate or the income thresholds. Under current law, the amount of the work-
related expenses eligible for the credit depends on a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income. Lower-
income individuals are permitted to take a higher share of expenses than higher-income
taxpayers. Changing the applicable credit rate can increase the availability of the credit to middle-
income households.
This later approach was proposed by President Obama and Vice President Biden as part of their
policy agenda to support middle-class working families. Specifically, the Obama-Biden proposal
is to increase the applicable credit rate to 35% for households with adjustable gross income over
$15,000 up to $85,000. In addition, unlike current law, households with AGI over $85,000 would
also be able to take advantage of the DCTC with a applicable credit rate that decreases by 1% as
AGI increases. Households with AGI over $115,000 would not be eligible for the DCTC. Table 3
shows the impact of the Obama-Biden proposal on the amount of the dependent care expenses
that would be eligible for the credit.
Table 3. Maximum Dependent Care Tax Credit Under Obama-Biden Proposal
Adjusted Gross
Maximum Credit Based on Number of
Income
Qualifying Individuals
One
Two or More
But Not
Applicable
($3,000 in qualified ($6,000 in qualified
Over
Over
Credit Rate
expenses)
expenses)
$0
$85,000
0.35
$1,050
$2,100
85,000
87,000
0.34
1,020
2,040
87,000
89,000
0.33
990
1,980
89,000
91,000
0.32
960
1,920
12 National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, Parents and the High Price of Child Care:
2010 Update.
13Genworth Financial, 2010 Cost of Care Survey: Home Care Providers, Adult Day Care, Health Care Facilities,
Assisted Living Facilities and Nursing Homes, April 2010.
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Adjusted Gross
Maximum Credit Based on Number of
Income
Qualifying Individuals
One
Two or More
But Not
Applicable
($3,000 in qualified ($6,000 in qualified
Over
Over
Credit Rate
expenses)
expenses)
91,000
93,000
0.31
930
1,860
93,000
95,000
0.30
900
1,800
95,000
97,000
0.29
870
1,740
97,000
99,000
0.28
840
1,680
99,000
101,000
0.27
810
1,620
101,000
103,000
0.26
780
1,560
103,000
105,000
0.25
750
1,500
105,000
107,000
0.24
720
1,440
107,000
109,000
0.23
690
1,380
109,000
111,000
0.22
660
1,320
111,000
113,000
0.21
630
1,260
113,000
No limit
0.20
600
1,200
Source: CRS Estimates.
Expand the Credit to Allow More Lower-Income
Caregivers to Participate
A key concern of the DCTC is the inability of lower-income households to take advantage of the
credit because the credit is nonrefundable. As noted earlier, a nonrefundable credit cannot be used
in full if a working caregiver’s tax liability is less than the amount of the credit. One legislative
option is to make the credit refundable.
Lower-income households would benefit the most from making the tax credit refundable. As
shown in earlier in Table 2, very few households with AGI up to $15,000 are eligible under
current law for the DCTC because they have no tax liability. Those taxpayers with AGI of
between $15,000 to $25,000 would only be eligible for part of the DCTC because they would not
have sufficient tax liability to offset the full DCTC amount. Under current law, 60% of the tax
benefits from the DCTC accrue to taxpayers with AGI over $50,000.
Estimates by the Tax Policy Center show that if the DCTC had been fully refundable in 2006, an
additional 1.6 million households would have claimed the credit and the cost of the credit (in lost
revenues) would have increased by $1.7 billion.14
14 Roberton Williams, President-Elect Obama’s Tax and Stimulus Plans, Tax Policy Center, January 2009. See also,
Jeffrey Rohaly, Reforming the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, Tax Policy Center, May 30, 2007, The Urban
Institute and Brookings Institution.
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Author Contact Information
Janemarie Mulvey
Christine Scott
Specialist in Aging and Income Security
Specialist in Social Policy
jmulvey@crs.loc.gov, 7-6928
cscott@crs.loc.gov, 7-7366
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