When do your free hours start?

Enter your child’s date of birth or due date. We’ll show how many free hours you get, when they start, and every date you mustn’t miss.

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Date of birth or due date

Are you working?What counts as working?Each parent expects to earn at least about £204 a week over the next 3 months. That's 16 hours a week at the minimum wage if you're over 21. If there are two of you, you both need to.Maternity, paternity and shared parental leave count as working. If you're self-employed and in your first year, the earnings rule doesn't apply yet. The exact figure is £2,643.68 over 3 months.More questions answered

Single parent? Just you. Couple? Both of you, unless one gets a carer’s or disability benefit. About £204 a week or more each. Parental leave counts.

Does either of you earn over £100,000?One of us earns over £100,000. Does that matter?Yes. If either parent expects to earn over £100,000 this tax year, you lose the working-parent free hours and the government top-up. It's each parent on their own, not added together: two parents on £99,000 each still qualify, one on £101,000 doesn't. You'd still get 15 hours a week from age 3.It's measured on "adjusted net income", which is roughly your taxable pay minus pension contributions and Gift Aid. Paying more into a pension can bring you back under the limit.More questions answered

Do you get Universal Credit?I get Universal Credit. What do I get?Universal Credit can pay back up to 85% of what you pay the nursery, which is often worth more than the top-up for working parents. You can't have both, so if you get Universal Credit, use that.Some families on Universal Credit also get 15 free hours from age 2. Your council calls this "Together for 2s" or the "2-year-old offer".More questions answered

Your chart and dates appear here as soon as you add a date.

Free hours only start on 1 January, 1 April or 1 September, and you need your code before that day or you wait a whole term. You can apply up to 6 months early. Expecting? It’s worth knowing your dates now.

Check your dates