Childcare & Family Tax Credits: What to Track

Family returns lean on paperwork that is easy to lose track of during a busy year: a child care provider's details, a child's birth certificate, custody papers. Who counts as a dependent and which credits a family can claim are IRS rules applied to each family's facts, so this guide does not decide them; the IRS pages are listed under Official sources below. What it covers is the family file: what to collect, where each document comes from in Central Texas, and the IRS tools that let you check your own situation.

Moreno Financial Services prepares returns for Central Texas families and military households. Individual returns start at $250, with the exact quote given on the free call. See our tax preparation services for the full list.

Child care provider details

The IRS has a form parents can give a child care provider to get the provider's correct name, address and taxpayer identification number. It is not the only source: the IRS also names a recently printed letterhead or invoice that shows the provider's name, address and number. The IRS says to keep that information with your tax records, and not to send the form to the IRS.

Collect those details when care starts rather than at the end of the year, and keep a record of what you paid and when: receipts, bank or card statement lines, or the provider's own statements. Our guide on what to bring to a tax appointment shows where those records fit with the rest of a return.

Child care on Fort Hood

Families using on-post child care at Fort Hood start with Child and Youth Services registration, which opens access to child care, youth programs and family support services. Placement in child care comes only after a request for care through MilitaryChildCare.com, and CYS families manage their accounts and make payments online through the WebTrac system. Save a record of those payments as you make them, since they belong in the family file with everything else.

Checking a provider, and help paying for care

Texas Child Care Connection, from the Texas Workforce Commission, explains the rules child care providers must follow, gives access to safety reports, and shows how to report a child safety concern. The Texas Workforce Commission's Child Care Services program also helps low-income Texas families pay for child care through scholarships, and its page explains eligibility.

A child's core documents

Birth certificates and Social Security cards come up more than once. The IRS notes, for example, that an in-person identity protection PIN request for a dependent takes two forms of identification for the child, such as a birth certificate and a Social Security card. The Texas Department of State Health Services issues certified copies of Texas vital records only to qualified applicants, with a completed application that includes acceptable identification and the correct fees, and a Texas birth certificate can be ordered by application or online.

Locally, the Bell County Clerk takes online requests for birth certificates and other vital records, and the Lampasas County Clerk has a birth certificate application for children born in Lampasas County. Keep the certified copies in a waterproof, fireproof place, as our guide to storing tax records describes.

Custody and divorce papers

The IRS has separate rules for children of separated or divorced parents, reached through the IRS pages listed below, so keep a copy of the current custody order or divorce decree in the family file. If you need a copy of a court document such as a divorce decree filed in Bell County, the District Clerk describes it as a two-step process that starts with a written request on the office's copy request form, and in-person requests are paid by cash or credit card, not personal check.

IRS tools for checking your own situation

The IRS Interactive Tax Assistant has an interview on whom you may claim as a dependent. It asks about marital status, relationship to the dependent and the amount of support provided; the IRS says your information is anonymous, and it notes its conclusions are based on the answers you give. The IRS Child Tax Credit page links its own Interactive Tax Assistant interview, and the separate EITC Assistant does not ask for your name, Social Security number, address or bank account numbers.

The family file

Everything above fits in one folder per tax year:

• Each child care provider's name, address and taxpayer identification number
• Records of what you paid for care, and when
• Birth certificates and Social Security cards, stored safely
• The current custody order or divorce decree, if there is one
• Notes on where each child lived during the year
• Any notice the IRS sent about a dependent

Bring it to the free call

Who you can claim, and which credits fit your family, are questions for your own facts. Bring the family file to a free 15-minute call and we will tell you honestly whether we can help. If you get a notice from the IRS, call us. We'll help you understand what it says and tell you if you need someone with IRS representation rights. Our free tax checklist has a family section to start with.