U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

2011

Instructions for Form 2441

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

Child and Dependent Care Expenses
Purpose of Form
More information. For more information about the
latest developments on Form 2441 and its instructions,
go to www.irs.gov/form2441.
If you paid someone to care for your child or other
qualifying person so you (and your spouse if filing jointly)
could work or look for work in 2011, you may be able to
take the credit for child and dependent care expenses.
You (and your spouse if filing jointly) must have earned
income to take the credit. But see Spouse Who Was a
Student or Disabled later. If you can take the credit, use
Form 2441 to figure the amount of your credit.
If you (or your spouse if filing jointly) received any
dependent care benefits for 2011, you must use Form
2441 to figure the amount, if any, of the benefits you can
exclude from your income on Form 1040, line 7, Form
1040A, line 7, or Form 1040NR, line 8. You must
complete Part III of Form 2441 before you can figure the
credit, if any, in Part II.
Additional information. See Pub. 503, Child and
Dependent Care Expenses, for more details.

Definitions
Dependent Care Benefits
Dependent care benefits include:
• Amounts your employer paid directly to either you or
your care provider for the care of your qualifying
person(s) while you worked,
• The fair market value of care in a daycare facility
provided or sponsored by your employer, and
• Pre-tax contributions you made under a dependent
care flexible spending arrangement (FSA).
Your salary may have been reduced to pay for these
benefits. If you received dependent care benefits as an
employee, they should be shown in box 10 of your 2011
Form(s) W-2. Benefits you received as a partner should
be shown in box 13 of your Schedule K-1 (Form 1065)
with code O.

Qualifying Person(s)
A qualifying person is:
• A qualifying child under age 13 whom you can claim as
a dependent. If the child turned 13 during the year, the
child is a qualifying person for the part of the year he or
she was under age 13.
• Your disabled spouse who was not physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself.
• Any disabled person who was not physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself whom you can
claim as a dependent (or could claim as a dependent
except that the person had gross income of $3,700 or
more or filed a joint return.)
• Any disabled person who was not physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself whom you
could claim as a dependent except that you (or your
Oct 06, 2011

spouse if filing jointly) could be claimed as a dependent
on another taxpayer’s 2011 return.
If you are divorced or separated, see Special rule for
children of divorced or separated parents below.
To find out who is a qualifying child and who is a
dependent, see Pub. 501, Exemptions, Standard
Deduction, and Filing Information.

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To be a qualifying person, the person must have
lived with you for more than half of 2011.

CAUTION

Special rule for children of divorced or separated
parents. Even if you cannot claim your child as a
dependent, he or she is treated as your qualifying person
if:
• The child was under age 13 or was not physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself, and
• You were the child’s custodial parent. The custodial
parent is the parent with whom the child lived for the
greater number of nights in 2011. If the child was with
each parent for an equal number of nights, the custodial
parent is the parent with the higher adjusted gross
income. For details and an exception for a parent who
works at night, see Pub. 501.
The noncustodial parent cannot treat the child as a
qualifying person even if that parent is entitled to claim
the child as a dependent under the special rules for a
child of divorced or separated parents.

Qualified Expenses
These include amounts paid for household services and
care of the qualifying person while you worked or looked
for work. Child support payments are not qualified
expenses. Also, expenses reimbursed by a state social
service agency are not qualified expenses unless you
included the reimbursement in your income.
Generally, if you worked or actively looked for work
during only part of the period in which you incurred the
expenses, you must figure your expenses for each day.
However, there are special rules for temporary absences
or part-time work. See Pub. 503 for more details.

Household Services
These are services needed to care for the qualifying
person as well as to run the home. They include, for
example, the services of a cook, maid, babysitter,
housekeeper, or cleaning person if the services were
partly for the care of the qualifying person. Do not include
services of a chauffeur or gardener.
You can also include your share of the employment
taxes paid on wages for qualifying child and dependent
care services.

Care of the Qualifying Person
Care includes the cost of services for the qualifying
person’s well-being and protection. It does not include
the cost of clothing or entertainment.

Cat. No. 10842K

• Your home was the qualifying person’s main home for

You can include the cost of care provided outside your
home for your dependent under age 13 or any other
qualifying person who regularly spends at least 8 hours a
day in your home. If the care was provided by a
dependent care center, the center must meet all
applicable state and local regulations. A dependent care
center is a place that provides care for more than six
persons (other than persons who live there) and receives
a fee, payment, or grant for providing services for any of
those persons, even if the center is not run for profit.

more than half of 2011,
• You paid more than half of the cost of keeping up that
home for 2011.

If you meet all the requirements to be treated as
unmarried and meet items 2 through 5 listed earlier, you
can take the credit or the exclusion. If you do not meet all
the requirements to be treated as unmarried, you cannot
take the credit. However, you can take the exclusion if
you meet items 2 through 5.

You can include amounts paid for items other than the
care of your child (such as food and schooling) only if the
items are incidental to the care of the child and cannot be
separated from the total cost. But do not include the cost
of schooling for a child in kindergarten or above. You can
include the cost of a day camp, even if it specializes in a
particular activity, such as soccer. But do not include any
expenses for sending your child to an overnight camp,
summer school, or a tutoring program.

Line Instructions
Line 1
Complete columns (a) through (d) for each person or
organization that provided the care. You can use Form
W-10, Dependent Care Provider’s Identification and
Certification, or any other source listed in its instructions
to get the information from the care provider. If you do
not give correct or complete information, your credit (and
exclusion, if applicable) may be disallowed unless you
can show you used due diligence in trying to get the
required information.

Medical Expenses
Some disabled spouse and dependent care expenses
can qualify as medical expenses if you itemize
deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040). However, you
cannot claim the same expense as both a dependent
care expense and a medical expense. See Pub. 502,
Medical and Dental Expenses, and Pub. 503 for details.

If you have more than two care providers, attach a
statement to your return with the required information. Be
sure to put your name and social security number (SSN)
on the statement. Also, enter “See Attached” right above
the Caution under line 1.

Who Can Take the Credit or Exclude
Dependent Care Benefits?

If you did not have a qualifying person nor any care
providers for 2011, and you are filing Form 2441 only to
report taxable income in Part III, enter “none” on line 1,
column (a).

You can take the credit or the exclusion if all five of the
following apply.
1. Your filing status may be single, head of household,
qualifying widow(er) with dependent child, or married
filing jointly. If your filing status is married filing
separately, see Married Persons Filing Separately below.
2. The care was provided so you (and your spouse if
filing jointly) could work or look for work. However, if you
did not find a job and have no earned income for the
year, you cannot take the credit or the exclusion. But if
your spouse was a full-time student or disabled, see the
instructions for line 5.

Due Diligence
You can show a serious and earnest effort (due
diligence) to get the information by keeping in your
records a Form W-10 completed by the care provider. Or
you may keep one of the other sources of information
listed in the instructions for Form W-10. If the provider
does not give you the information, complete the entries
you can on line 1. For example, enter the provider’s
name and address. Enter “See Attached Statement” in
the columns for which you do not have the information.
Then, attach a statement to your return explaining that
the provider did not give you the information you
requested.

Note. Child support payments received by you are not
included in your gross income and are not considered as
earned income for figuring this credit.
3. The care must be for one or more qualifying
persons.
4. The person who provided the care was not your
spouse, the parent of your qualifying child, or a person
whom you can claim as a dependent. If your child
provided the care, he or she must have been age 19 or
older by the end of 2011, and he or she cannot be your
dependent.
5. You report the required information about the care
provider on line 1 and, if taking the credit, the information
about the qualifying person on line 2.

Columns (a) and (b)
Enter the care provider’s name and address. If you were
covered by your employer’s dependent care plan and
your employer furnished the care (either at your
workplace or by hiring a care provider), enter your
employer’s name in column (a). Next, enter “See W-2” in
column (b). Then, leave columns (c) and (d) blank. But if
your employer paid a third party (not hired by your
employer) on your behalf to provide the care, you must
give information on the third party in columns (a) through
(d).

Married Persons Filing Separately

Column (c)

Generally, married persons must file a joint return to
claim the credit. If your filing status is married filing
separately and all of the following apply, you are
considered unmarried for purposes of claiming the credit
on Form 2441.
• You lived apart from your spouse during the last 6
months of 2011,

If the care provider is an individual, enter his or her social
security number (SSN). Otherwise, enter the provider’s
employer identification number (EIN). If the provider is a
tax-exempt organization, enter “Tax-Exempt” in column
(c).
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Instructions for Form 2441 (2011)

U.S. citizens and resident aliens living abroad. If you
are living abroad, your care provider may not have, and
may not be required to get, a U.S. taxpayer identification
number (for example, an SSN or EIN). If so, enter
“LAFCP” (Living Abroad Foreign Care Provider) in the
space for the care provider’s taxpayer identification
number.

list -0- for the one child and the actual amount for the
second child. The $6,000 limit would still be used to
compute your credit unless you have already excluded or
deducted, in Part III, certain dependent care benefits paid
to you (or on your behalf) by your employer.

Column (d)

If filing jointly, figure your and your spouse’s earned
income separately. Enter your earned income on line 4
and your spouse’s earned income on line 5. If your
spouse was a student or disabled, see the instructions for
line 5.

Line 4

Enter the total amount you actually paid in 2011 to the
care provider. Also, include amounts your employer paid
to a third party on your behalf. It does not matter when
the expenses were incurred. Do not reduce this amount
by any reimbursement you received.

Earned income for figuring the credit includes the
following amounts.
1. The amount shown on Form 1040, line 7, Form
1040A, line 7, or Form 1040NR, line 8, minus any
amount:
a. Included for a scholarship or fellowship grant that
was not reported to you on a Form W-2,
b. Also reported on Schedule SE (Form 1040)
because you were a member of the clergy or you
received $108.28 or more of church employee income,
c. Received for work performed while an inmate in a
penal institution, and
d. Received as a pension or annuity from a
nonqualified deferred compensation plan or a
nongovernmental section 457(b) plan. This amount may
be reported in box 11 of Form W-2. If you received such
an amount but box 11 is blank, contact your employer for
the amount received as a pension or annuity.
2. The amount shown on Schedule SE, line 3, minus
any deduction you claim on Form 1040 or Form 1040NR,
line 27. If you use either optional method to figure
self-employment tax, subtract any deduction you claim on
Form 1040 or Form 1040NR, line 27, from the total of the
amounts shown on Schedule SE, Section B, lines 3 and
4b. If you received church employee income of $108.28
or more, subtract any deduction you claim on Form 1040
or Form 1040NR, line 27, from the total of the amounts
shown on Schedule SE, Section B, lines 3, 4b, and 5a.
3. If you are filing Schedule C or C-EZ (Form 1040) as
a statutory employee, the amount shown on line 1 of the
schedule.
4. Nontaxable combat pay, if you elect to include it in
earned income. However, including this income will only
give you a larger credit if your (or your spouse’s) other
earned income is less than the amount entered on line 3.
To make the election, include all of your nontaxable
combat pay in the amount you enter on line 4 (line 5 for
your spouse if filing jointly). If you are filing jointly and
both you and your spouse received nontaxable combat
pay, you can each make your own election. The amount
of your nontaxable combat pay should be shown in box
12 of your Form(s) W-2 with code Q.

Line 2
Complete columns (a) through (c) for each qualifying
person. If you have more than two qualifying persons,
attach a statement to your return with the required
information. Be sure to put your name and social security
number (SSN) on the statement. Also, enter “See
Attached” on the dotted line next to line 3.

Column (b)
You must enter the qualifying person’s SSN. Be sure the
name and SSN entered agree with the person’s social
security card. Otherwise, at the time we process your
return, we may reduce or disallow your credit. If the child
was born and died in 2011 and did not have an SSN,
enter “Died” in column (b) and attach a copy of the child’s
birth certificate, death certificate, or hospital medical
records.
To find out how to get an SSN, see Social Security
Number (SSN) in the Form 1040 or Form 1040A
instructions, or Identifying number in the Form 1040NR
instructions. If the name or SSN on the person’s social
security card is not correct, call the Social Security
Administration at 1-800-772-1213.

Column (c)
Enter the qualified expenses you incurred and paid in
2011 for the person listed in column (a). Prepaid
expenses are treated as paid in the year the care is
provided. Do not include in column (c) qualified
expenses:
• You incurred in 2011 but did not pay until 2012. You
may be able to use these expenses to increase your
2012 credit.
• You incurred in 2010 but did not pay until 2011.
Instead, see the instructions for line 9.
• You prepaid in 2011 for care to be provided in 2012.
These expenses can only be used to figure your 2012
credit.
If you paid qualified expenses for the care of two
TIP or more qualifying persons, the $6,000 limit
(because you have 2 or more qualifying persons)
does not need to be divided equally. For example, if you
paid and incurred $2,500 of qualified expenses for the
care of one qualifying person and $3,500 for the care of
another qualifying person, you can use the total, $6,000,
to figure the credit.

You can choose to include your nontaxable
TIP combat pay in earned income when figuring your
credit, even if you choose not to include it in
earned income for the earned income credit (EIC) or the
exclusion or deduction for child and dependent care
benefits.

To qualify for the credit, you must have 1 or more
qualifying persons. You should show the expenses for
each child in column (c) of line 2. However, it is possible
a qualifying child could have no expenses and a second
child could have expenses exceeding $3,000. You should
Instructions for Form 2441 (2011)

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CAUTION

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You must reduce your earned income by any loss
from self-employment.

Special Situations

any unused amount from 2010 to use during a grace
period in 2011. Enter on line 13 the amount you carried
forward and used in 2011 during the grace period.

• If you are filing jointly, disregard community property
laws.
• If your spouse died in 2011, see Pub. 503.
• If your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in
2011, see the instructions for line 5 below.

Line 14
If you had an employer-provided dependent care plan,
enter on line 14 the total of the following amounts
included on line 12.
• Any amount you forfeited. You forfeited an amount if
you did not receive it because you did not incur the
expense. Do not include amounts you expect to receive
at a future date.
• Any amount you did not receive but are permitted by
your employer to carry forward and use in the following
year during a grace period.
Example. Under your employer’s dependent care plan,
you chose to have your employer set aside $5,000 to
cover your 2011 dependent care expenses. The $5,000
is shown in box 10 of your Form W-2. In 2011, you
incurred and were reimbursed for $4,950 of qualified
expenses. You would enter $5,000 on line 12 and $50,
the amount forfeited, on line 14. You would also enter
$50 on line 14 if, instead of forfeiting the amount, your
employer permitted you to carry the $50 forward to use
during the grace period in 2012.

Line 5
Spouse Who Was a Student or Disabled
Your spouse was a full-time student if he or she was
enrolled as a full-time student at a school during any 5
months of 2011. A school does not include an on-the-job
training course, correspondence school, or a school
offering courses only through the Internet. Your spouse
was disabled if he or she was not physically or mentally
capable of self-care. Figure your spouse’s earned income
on a monthly basis.
For each month or part of a month your spouse was a
student or was disabled, he or she is considered to have
worked and earned income. His or her earned income for
each month is considered to be at least $250 ($500 if
more than one qualifying person was cared for in 2011).
If your spouse also worked during that month, use the
higher of $250 (or $500) or his or her actual earned
income for that month. If, in the same month, both you
and your spouse were either students or disabled, only
one of you can be treated as having earned income in
that month.
For any month that your spouse was not a student or
disabled, use your spouse’s actual earned income if he
or she worked during the month.

Line 15
Add the amounts on lines 12 and 13 and subtract from
that total, the amount on line 14. Enter the result on
line 15.

Line 16
Enter the total of all qualified expenses incurred in 2011
for the care of your qualifying person(s). It does not
matter when the expenses were paid.
Example. You received $2,000 in cash under your
employer’s dependent care plan for 2011. The $2,000 is
shown in box 10 of your Form W-2. Only $900 of
qualified expenses were incurred in 2011 for the care of
your 5-year-old dependent child. You would enter $2,000
on line 12 and $900 on line 16.

Line 9
Credit for Prior Year’s Expenses
If you had qualified expenses for 2010 that you did not
pay until 2011, you may be able to increase the amount
of credit you can take in 2011. To figure the credit, see
the worksheet under Amount of Credit in Pub. 503. If you
can take a credit for your 2010 expenses, enter the
amount of the additional credit and “CPYE” (Credit for
Prior Year Expenses) on the dotted line next to line 9.
Add the credit to the amount on line 9 and replace the
amount on line 9 with that total. Also, attach a statement
to your tax return showing the name and taxpayer
identification number of the person for whom you paid the
prior year’s expenses and how you figured the credit.

Line 18
If filing jointly, figure your and your spouse’s earned
income separately. Enter your earned income on line 18
and your spouse’s earned income on line 19. If your filing
status is married filing separately or your spouse was a
student or disabled, see the instructions for line 19.
Earned income for figuring the amount of dependent
care benefits you are able to exclude or deduct from your
income includes the following amounts.
1. The amount shown on Form 1040, line 7, Form
1040A, line 7, or Form 1040NR, line 8, minus any
amount:
a. Included for a scholarship or fellowship grant that
was not reported to you on a Form W-2,
b. Also reported on Schedule SE (Form 1040)
because you were a member of the clergy or you
received $108.28 or more of church employee income,
c. Received for work performed while an inmate in a
penal institution, and
d. Received as a pension or annuity from a
nonqualified deferred compensation plan or a
nongovernmental section 457(b) plan. This amount may
be reported in box 11 of Form W-2. If you received such
an amount but box 11 is blank, contact your employer for
the amount received as a pension or annuity.

Line 10
Credit Limit Worksheet
Complete this worksheet to figure the amount to enter on
line 10.
1. Enter the amount from Form 1040, line 46; Form
1040A, line 28; or Form 1040NR, line 44 . . . . . 1.
2. Enter the amount from Form 1040, line 47; or
Form 1040NR, line 45; Form 1040A filers enter
-0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.
3. Subtract line 2 from line 1. Also enter this
amount on Form 2441, line 10. But if zero or
less, Stop; you cannot take the credit . . . . . . . 3.

Line 13
If you had an employer-provided dependent care plan,
your employer may have permitted you to carry forward
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Instructions for Form 2441 (2011)

2. The amount shown on Schedule SE, line 3, minus
any deduction you claim on Form 1040 or Form 1040NR,
line 27. If you use either optional method to figure
self-employment tax, subtract any deduction you claim on
Form 1040 or Form 1040NR, line 27, from the total of the
amounts shown on Schedule SE, Section B, lines 3 and
4b. If you received church employee income of $108.28
or more, subtract any deduction you claim on Form 1040
or Form 1040NR, line 27, from the total of the amounts
shown on Schedule SE, Section B, lines 3, 4b, and 5a.
3. If you are filing Schedule C or C-EZ (Form 1040) as
a statutory employee, the amount shown on line 1 of the
schedule.
4. Nontaxable combat pay, if you elect to include it in
earned income. However, including this income will only
give you a larger exclusion or deduction if your (or your
spouse’s) other earned income is less than the amount
entered on line 17. To make the election, include all of
your nontaxable combat pay in the amount you enter on
line 18 (line 19 for your spouse if filing jointly). If you are
filing jointly and both you and your spouse received
nontaxable combat pay, you can each make your own
election. The amount of your nontaxable combat pay
should be shown in box 12 of your Form(s) W-2 with
code Q.

!

CAUTION

Special Situations

• If you are filing jointly, disregard community property
laws.
• If your spouse died in 2011, see Pub. 503.
• If your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in
2011, see the instructions for line 5 earlier.

Line 19
If your filing status is married filing separately, see
Married Persons Filing Separately earlier. Are you
considered unmarried under that rule?

CAUTION

Yes. Enter your earned income (from line 18) on line
19. On line 21, enter $5,000.

❏

No. Enter your spouse’s earned income on line 19. If
your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in
2011, see the instructions for line 5. On line 21, enter
$2,500.

Include your deductible benefits in the total entered on
Schedule C, line 14; Schedule E, line 19 or line 28; or
Schedule F, line 15; whichever applies.

Lines 27 through 31
If you are reporting dependent care benefits on page 2 of
the form, you will need to complete lines 27 through 31 if
you are also claiming the credit for child and dependent
care expenses on page 1 of the form.

For purposes of line 18, earned income does not
include any dependent care benefits shown on
line 12.

Instructions for Form 2441 (2011)

❏

Line 24

You can choose to include your nontaxable
TIP combat pay in earned income when figuring your
exclusion or deduction, even if you choose not to
include it in earned income for the earned income credit
(EIC) or the credit for child and dependent care
expenses.

!

You must reduce your earned income by any loss
from self-employment.

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