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<\/p>\nMARTIN Lewis has issued an urgent warning for all parents as hundreds of thousands miss out on \u00a32,000 free cash every year.<\/p>\n
Many families are still missing out on vital support through the government's tax-free childcare scheme.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The benefit was claimed for a total of 836,000\u00a0children\u00a0in the last financial year, according to the latest stats by\u00a0HMRC.<\/p>\n
But more than 650,000 parents are still believed to be missing out.<\/p>\n
But on average, parents are only claiming \u00a3638 per child, far short of the \u00a32,000 they are entitled to.<\/p>\n
During an appearance on ITV's This Morning, Martin Lewis helped a viewer who wanted to know if he and his partner could claim any support for their young grandson.<\/p>\n
The couple said they are the child's legal guardians, meaning they have legal authority to care for the child.<\/p>\n The consumer expert urged him to check to see if he could be entitled to tax-free childcare.<\/p>\n Martin said: "If you are a single parent and you're working, or you're in a couple and you're both working, and earn less than \u00a3100,000, then you can effectively get the state to put some money towards your childcare.<\/p>\n "So for every 80p you save in tax-free childcare, the state will add 20p on top.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n "And there are hundreds of thousands of families missing out on tax-free childcare which could help to pay your nursery fees."<\/p>\n You can get up to \u00a32,000 per year for each of your children to help with the cost of childcare.<\/p>\n If your child is\u00a0disabled, you can get up to \u00a34,000 a year.<\/p>\n You can apply on the government's website by signing up for a childcare account.<\/p>\n Tax-free childcare is a government scheme where parents or guardians can get \u00a32 free for every \u00a38 put into an account.<\/p>\n Parents can get up to a maximum of \u00a32,000 a year per child or \u00a34,000 if their child is disabled.<\/p>\n The child has to be 11 or younger, or 16 if they are\u00a0disabled.<\/p>\n The money has to be used to pay for childcare, including nursery, childminders, break or after\u00a0school\u00a0clubs.<\/p>\n It can be used to pay for holiday care or an out of school activity too.<\/p>\n As an example, if your childcare costs are \u00a3750 a month, you could pay \u00a3600 into your childcare account and the government would pay \u00a3150.<\/p>\n Not only are you covered each month, you'd be saving \u00a31,800 a year per child.<\/p>\n It's worth doing the maths yourself to figure out how much you should be putting into your account each month.<\/p>\n Whether you are eligible or not for tax-free childcare depends on your personal circumstances, including your income.<\/p>\n But, you can still get help if you are working, including if you are self-employed.<\/p>\n You and your partner need to be earning the equivalent of 16 hours a week at the national minimum or living wage.<\/p>\n But, if one of you earns over \u00a3100,000 or more a year you won't qualify.<\/p>\n This does mean you can qualify for tax-free childcare if you earn \u00a399,999 a year or less though.<\/p>\n Remember, you can claim tax-free childcare at the same as 30 hours of free childcare.<\/p>\n But you can't claim under the scheme if you are on tax credits, Universal Credit or receiving childcare vouchers.<\/p>\n You can apply for the scheme online via the government's website.<\/p>\n The application process should take around 20 minutes and you'll need your\u00a0National Insurance\u00a0and Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number to hand (if you are self-employed).<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/martin-lewis-reveals-x-step-856367045-4.jpg\")
<\/picture>CASH IN <\/span><\/p>\nI found \u00a32,000 free cash in lost bank accounts thanks to handy Martin Lewis tip<\/h3>\n
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What is tax-free childcare?<\/h2>\n
Who is eligible and how can I claim?<\/h2>\n
Read More on The Sun<\/h2>\n
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