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2022

Instructions for Form 2441

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

Child and Dependent Care Expenses
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code
unless otherwise noted.

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to
Form 2441 and its instructions, such as legislation
enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/
Form2441.

What’s New
The 2021 enhancements to the credit for child and
dependent care expenses have expired. The changes
to the credit for child and dependent care expenses for
2021 under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 have
expired. For 2022, the credit for child and dependent care
expenses is nonrefundable and you may claim the credit
on qualifying employment-related expenses of up to
$3,000 if you had one qualifying person, or $6,000 if you
had two or more qualifying persons. The maximum credit
is 35% of your employment-related expenses. The more
you earn, the lower the percentage of employment-related
expenses that are considered in determining the credit.
Once your adjusted gross income is over $43,000, the
maximum credit is 20% of your employment-related
expenses. See Form 2441, line 8, for the 2022 phaseout
schedule. If you paid 2021 expenses in 2022, see the
instructions for line 9b and complete Worksheet A in the
instructions. For additional information about the credit,
see Pub. 503, Child and Dependent Care Expenses,
available at IRS.gov/Pub503.
The 2021 enhancements to dependent care benefits
have expired. The changes to dependent care benefits
under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 have
expired. For 2022, the maximum amount that can be
excluded from an employee’s income through a
dependent care assistance program is $5,000 ($2,500 if
married filing separately). Dependent care benefits are
reported on line 12.
Temporary special rules for dependent care flexible
spending arrangements (FSAs). Section 214 of the
Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020
provides temporary COVID-19 relief for dependent care
FSAs. This legislation allows employers to amend their
dependent care plan to allow unused amounts to be used
in a subsequent year. Unused amounts from 2020 and/or
2021 are added to the maximum amount of dependent
care benefits that are allowed for 2022. See the
instructions for line 13.
New line B. There is a new line B that has a checkbox for
you to indicate if you’re entering deemed income of $250
or $500 a month on Form 2441 based on the income rules
listed later in the instructions under If You or Your Spouse
Was a Student or Disabled.
Oct 11, 2022

New checkbox on line 2, column (c). There is a new
checkbox on line 2, column (c), for you to indicate if the
qualifying person was over age 12 and was disabled. See
Column (c) under Line 2, later.

Reminders
Married persons filing separately checkbox on line A.
Generally, married persons must file a joint return to claim
the credit. If you claim the credit and your filing status is
married filing separately, you are required to show you
meet the special requirements listed later under Married
Persons Filing Separately by checking the checkbox
located on line A above Part I on Form 2441. See Line A,
later, for more information.

Purpose of Form

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 2022, you may be able to
take the credit for child and dependent care expenses.
In addition, if you (or your spouse if filing jointly)
received any dependent care benefits for 2022, you must
use Form 2441 to figure the amount, if any, of the benefits
you can exclude from your income. You must complete
Part III of Form 2441 before you can figure the credit, if
any, in Part II.
You (and your spouse if filing jointly) must have earned
income to take the credit or exclude dependent care
benefits from your income. But see If You or Your Spouse
Was a Student or Disabled, later, if either of these
circumstances applies.
Additional information. See Pub. 503 for more details.

Definitions
Dependent Care Benefits

Dependent care benefits may 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 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 Form
W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. 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 any of the following.

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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.
Generally, the noncustodial parent can't 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 or parents who
live apart.

1. 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.
2. Your disabled spouse who wasn't physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself and lived with
you for more than half the year.
3. Any disabled person who wasn't physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself who lived with
you for more than half the year and whom you can claim
as a dependent or could claim as a dependent except:
a. The disabled person had gross income of $4,400 or
more,
b. The disabled person filed a joint return, or
c. You (or your spouse if filing jointly) could be claimed
as a dependent on another taxpayer's 2022 return.

Qualified Expenses

These include amounts paid for household services and
care of the qualifying person while you worked or looked
for work. Your work can be for others or in your own
business and it can be either in or out of your home. Child
support payments aren't qualified expenses. Also,
expenses reimbursed by a state social service agency
aren't qualified expenses.

If you are divorced or separated, see Special rule for
children of divorced or separated parents or parents who
live apart below. See the instructions for line 13, later, for
a special rule that allows certain dependent care benefits
reported on line 13 to be used for a qualifying child that
was age 13.

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. Also, if part of an expense is work
related (for either household services or the care of a
qualifying person) and part is for other purposes, you have
to divide the expense. However, you don't have to divide
the expense if only a small part is for other purposes. See
Pub. 503 for more details.

To find out who is a qualifying child and who is a
dependent, see Pub. 501, Dependents, Standard
Deduction, and Filing Information. See Pub. 503 for
information about an adopted child or foster child and
information about the birth or death of an otherwise
qualifying person.

Household Services
These are services needed to care for the qualifying
person as well as to run the home while you worked or
looked for work. 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. However, they don't include the services of a
chauffeur, bartender, or gardener.

To be a qualifying person, generally the person

TIP must have lived with you for more than half of

2022. Your child is considered to have lived with
you during periods of time when one of you, or both, are
temporarily absent due to special circumstances, such as
illness, education, business, vacation, or military service.
Physically or mentally not able to care for oneself.
Persons who can't dress, clean, or feed themselves
because of physical or mental problems are considered
not able to care for themselves. Also, persons who must
have constant attention to prevent them from injuring
themselves or others are considered not able to care for
themselves.

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
Expenses are for the care of a qualifying person while you
worked or looked for work only if their main purpose is for
the person's well-being and protection. It doesn't include
the cost of food, lodging, education, clothing, or
entertainment.

Special rule for children of divorced or separated parents or parents who live apart. Even if you can't claim
your child as a dependent, he or she is treated as your
qualifying person if:
• The child was under age 13 or wasn't physically or
mentally able to care for himself or herself;
• The child received over half of his or her support during
the calendar year from one or both parents who are
divorced or legally separated under a decree of divorce or
separate maintenance, are separated under a written
separation agreement, or lived apart at all times during the
last 6 months of the calendar year;
• The child was in the custody of one or both parents for
more than half the year; and
• You were the child's custodial parent.
Generally, the custodial parent is the parent with whom
the child lived for the greater number of nights in 2022. If
the child was with each parent for an equal number of

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 isn't run for profit.
You can include amounts paid for items other than the
care of your child (such as food and schooling) only if the
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you can generally take the exclusion if you meet items 2
through 5.

items are incidental to the care of the child and can't be
separated from the total cost. But don't 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 computers or soccer. But don't
include any expenses for sending your child to an
overnight camp, a summer school, or a tutoring program.
See Pub. 503 for more details.

See Pub. 503 for examples of when married persons
filing separately may claim the credit.

Line Instructions
Line A

If your filing status is married filing separately and you
meet the requirements to claim the credit for child and
dependent care expenses, you must check the box on line
A. By checking the box, you are confirming that you meet
the requirements listed earlier under Married Persons
Filing Separately.

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 can't 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.

Line B

If you or your spouse was a student or was disabled
during the year and you're entering deemed income of
$250 or $500 a month on Form 2441, line 4, 5, 18, or 19,
based on the income rules listed later in the instructions
under If You or Your Spouse Was a Student or Disabled,
check the box on line B.

Who Can Take the Credit or Exclude
Dependent Care Benefits?

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 surviving spouse, or married filing jointly. If your
filing status is married filing separately, see Married
Persons Filing Separately, later.
2. The care was provided so you (and your spouse if
filing jointly) could work or look for work. However, if you
didn't find a job and have no earned income for the year,
you can't take the credit or the exclusion. But if you or your
spouse was a full-time student or disabled, see the
instructions for lines 4 and 5, later.
3. The care must be for one or more qualifying
persons. See Qualifying Person(s), earlier.
4. The person who provided the care wasn't your
spouse, the parent of your qualifying child, or a person
whom you can claim as a dependent. If your child
(including stepchild or foster child) provided the care, he
or she must have been age 19 or older by the end of
2022, and he or she can't 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.

Part I. Persons or Organizations Who
Provided the Care
Line 1

Complete columns (a) through (e) 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 don't 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.

If you have more than three care providers, check the
box above line 1 and attach a statement to your return
with the required information. Be sure to put your name
and social security number (SSN) on the statement. In this
situation, all the lines on line 1 of Form 2441 must be
completed with information for the three highest paid
providers. The attached statement must provide the same
information for the additional providers not listed on the
form. The attached statement may optionally include the
full list of providers including the ones already listed on the
form, but you should indicate which providers listed on the
statement are also listed on the form.

Married Persons Filing Separately

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 2022.
• Your home was the qualifying person's main home for
more than half of 2022.
• You paid more than half of the cost of keeping up that
home for 2022.

If you had neither a qualifying person nor any care
providers for 2022, and you are filing Form 2441 only to
report taxable income in Part III, enter “none” on line 1,
column (a).

Due Diligence
You can show a serious and earnest effort (due diligence)
by getting and keeping the provider’s completed Form
W-10 or one of the other sources of information listed in
the instructions for Form W-10. If the provider doesn't 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

If you meet all of the requirements to be treated as
unmarried and meet items 2 through 5 listed earlier, you
can generally take the credit or the exclusion. If you
don't meet all of the requirements to be treated as
unmarried, you can’t generally take the credit. However,
Instructions for Form 2441 (2022)

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expenses were incurred. Don't reduce this amount by any
reimbursement you received.

for which you don't have the information. Then, attach a
statement to your return explaining that the provider didn't
give you the information you requested.

Part II. Credit for Child and
Dependent Care Expenses

Don't list an ineligible related individual as a care
provider on line 1. No credit is allowed for any
CAUTION amount paid to your spouse, the parent of your
qualifying child, or a person whom you can claim as a
dependent. If your child (including stepchild or foster
child) provided the care, he or she must have been age 19
or older by the end of the year, and he or she can't be your
dependent.

!

Line 2

Complete columns (a) through (d) for each qualifying
person. If you have more than three qualifying persons,
check the box on line 2 and attach a statement to your
return with the required information. Be sure to put your
name and SSN on the statement. In this situation, all the
lines on line 2 of Form 2441 must be completed with
information for the three people with the highest qualifying
expenses. The attached statement must provide the same
information for the additional qualifying people not listed
on the form. The attached statement may optionally
include the full list of qualifying people including the ones
already listed on the form, but you should indicate which
qualifying people listed on the statement are also listed on
the form.

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). Then, enter “See W-2” in column (b) and,
leave columns (c) and (e) 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 (e).

!

CAUTION

Column (c)

Don't list a person on line 2 unless they are listed
as an eligible person under Qualifying Person(s),
earlier.

Column (b)

If the care provider is an individual, enter his or her SSN or
individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN).
Otherwise, enter the provider's employer identification
number (EIN). If the provider is a tax-exempt organization,
enter “Tax-Exempt” in column (c).

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 2022 and didn't have an SSN, enter
“Died” in column (b) and attach a copy of the child's birth
certificate, death certificate, or hospital medical records.

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.

To find out how to get an SSN, see Social Security
Number (SSN) in the Instructions for Form 1040. If the
name or SSN on the person's social security card isn't
correct, call the Social Security Administration at
800-772-1213.

Column (d)

If the qualifying person has an individual taxpayer
identification number (ITIN) or adoption taxpayer
identification number (ATIN), see Taxpayer identification
number in Pub. 503.

You must check either the "Yes" or "No" box in column (d)
to indicate whether or not the care provider listed in
column (a) was your household employee during the year.
If you pay someone to come to your home and care for
your dependent or spouse and you can control not only
what work is done, but how it is done, that person is
probably a household employee and you may need to file
Schedule H (Form 1040), Household Employment Taxes,
with your tax return and pay household employment
taxes. For example, nannies are generally household
employees, while daycare centers are not. For more
information on a household employer's tax
responsibilities, see Schedule H (Form 1040) and its
instructions, and Pub. 926, Household Employer’s Tax
Guide.

Column (c)
Check the box in column (c) if the qualifying person listed
in column (a) was over age 12 and was disabled. A
person was disabled if they weren't physically or mentally
able to care for themselves. A person over age 12 must
not physically or mentally be able to care for themselves
to be listed on line 2. Don’t enter your spouse on line 2
unless they were physically or mentally incapable of
caring for themselves. See Qualifying Person(s), earlier.
Also, see the instructions for line 13, later, for a special
rule that allows certain dependent care benefits reported
on line 13 to be used for a qualifying child that was age
13.

Column (e)
Enter the total amount you actually paid in 2022 to the
care provider. Also, include amounts your employer paid
to a third party on your behalf. It doesn't matter when the
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3. If you are filing Schedule C (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. (In other words, if one of you makes the
election, the other one can also make it but doesn't have
to.) The amount of your nontaxable combat pay should be
shown in box 12 of your Form(s) W-2 with code Q.

Column (d)
Enter the qualified expenses you incurred and paid in
2022 for the person listed in column (a). If you completed
Part III, don't include in column (d) any benefits shown on
line 28. Don't include in column (d) the following qualified
expenses.
• Expenses you incurred in 2021 but didn't pay until
2022. Instead, see the instructions for line 9b.
• Expenses you incurred in 2022 but didn't pay until
2023. You may be able to use these expenses to increase
your 2023 credit.
• Expenses you prepaid in 2022 for care to be provided
in 2023. These expenses can only be used to figure your
2023 credit.
To qualify for the credit, you must have one or more
qualifying persons. You should show the expenses for
each qualifying person in column (d) of line 2. The
maximum amount of work-related expenses you can take
into account for purposes of the credit is $6,000 if you
have two or more qualifying persons even if you only
incurred expenses for just one of them. For example, if
you have two qualifying children, one age 3 and one age
11, and you incur $6,000 of qualifying work-related
expenses for the 3-year-old, and no qualifying
work-related expenses for the 11-year-old, you can use
$6,000 to figure the credit. In this situation, you should list
$6,000 for the 3-year-old child and -0- for the 11-year-old
child. The $6,000 limit would 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.

You can elect to include your nontaxable combat

TIP pay in earned income when figuring your credit,

even if you elect not to include it in earned income
for the earned income credit (EIC) or the exclusion or
deduction for child and dependent care benefits.

!

CAUTION

Child support payments received by you aren't
included in your gross income and aren't considered as
earned income for figuring this credit.
See Pub. 503 for additional details on what is
considered earned income.

If You or Your Spouse Was a Student or Disabled

Lines 4 and 5

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.

Your spouse's earned income. 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 you had two or more qualifying
persons at any time during 2022). Enter that amount on
line 5. 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.
For any month that your spouse wasn't a student or
disabled, use your spouse's actual earned income if he or
she worked during the month.
Your spouse was a full-time student if he or she was
enrolled as a full-time student at a school for some part of
each of 5 calendar months during 2022. The months need
not be consecutive. A school doesn't include an
on-the-job training course, a correspondence school, or a
school offering courses only through the Internet. Your
spouse was disabled if he or she wasn't physically or
mentally capable of caring for himself or herself. Figure
your spouse's earned income on a monthly basis.

Earned income for figuring the credit generally includes
the following amounts.
1. The amount shown on Form 1040, 1040-SR, or
1040-NR, line 1z, minus any amount:
a. Excluded as foreign earned income (including any
housing exclusion) on Form 2555, line 43; or
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.
2. The amount shown on Schedule SE (Form 1040),
line 3, minus any deduction you claim on Schedule 1
(Form 1040), line 15.
If you use either optional method to figure
self-employment tax, subtract any deduction you claim on
Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 15, from the total of the
amounts shown on Schedule SE (Form 1040), lines 3 and
4b.
If you received church employee income of $108.28 or
more, subtract any deduction you claim on Schedule 1
(Form 1040), line 15, from the total of the amounts shown
on Schedule SE (Form 1040), lines 3, 4b, and 5a.

Instructions for Form 2441 (2022)

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

Your earned income. These rules for a spouse who was
a student or disabled also apply to you if you were a
student or disabled. For each month or part of a month
you were a student or disabled, your earned income is
considered to be at least $250 ($500 if you had two or
more qualifying persons at any time during 2022). Enter
that amount on line 4. If you also worked during that
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month, enter the higher of $250 (or $500) or your actual
earned income for that month.

2022. Enter on line 13 the amount you carried forward and
used in 2022.

Both spouses were students or disabled. 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 under these rules.

Temporary special rules for unused amount in dependent care FSAs. Section 214 of the Taxpayer
Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 allows your
employer to amend its dependent care plan to allow
employees to carry over unused benefits from a plan year
ending in 2020 to a plan year ending in 2021 and from a
plan year ending in 2021 to a plan year ending in 2022.
Alternatively, your employer may extend the claims period
for a plan year ending in 2020 or 2021 to 12 months after
the end of the plan year for unused benefits remaining in
the dependent care FSA. Your employer can tell you
whether your dependent care plan was amended. Unused
amounts from 2020 and/or 2021 are added to the
maximum amount of dependent care benefits that are
allowed for 2022. For more information about these rules,
see Notice 2021-15, 2021-10 I.R.B. 898, available at
IRS.gov/irb/2021-10_IRB#NOT-2021-15; and Notice
2021-26, 2021-21 I.R.B. 1157, available at IRS.gov/irb/
2021-21_IRB#NOT-2021-26.

Special Situations

• If you are filing jointly, disregard community property
laws in determining the earned income of an individual.
Community property laws are explained in Pub. 555.
• If your spouse died in 2022, see Pub. 503.
Line 9b

If you had qualified expenses for 2021 that you didn't pay
until 2022 and you didn't claim a credit on the maximum
amount of qualified expenses for 2021, you may be able
to increase the amount of the credit you can take in 2022.
To figure the credit, complete Worksheet A at the end of
these instructions. Enter on line 9b the amount from
line 13 of Worksheet A.

Temporary carryforward rule for dependent care
FSAs where dependent aged out during the COVID-19 pandemic. Section 214 of the Taxpayer Certainty
and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 allows your employer
to amend its dependent care plan to extend the maximum
age of eligible dependents from 12 to 13 for dependent
care FSAs for unused amounts from the 2020 plan year
carried over into the 2021 plan year. Your employer can
tell you whether your dependent care plan was amended.
If your employer’s plan has adopted this change, you may
use unused dependent care benefits from the 2020 plan
year carried over into the 2021 plan year (including any
portion of the 2022 calendar year that is part of your 2021
non-calendar plan year) to pay for a child under age 14 for
the 2021 plan year. This relief only applies to amounts
received from a dependent care plan and entered on
Form 2441, line 13; it does not apply to amounts you paid
outside of a dependent care plan. For more information
about this relief, see Notice 2021-15.

Example. In 2021, Kate had childcare expenses of
$2,600 for her 4-year-old child. Of the $2,600, she paid
$2,000 in 2021 and $600 in 2022. Kate will use Worksheet
A to figure her credit on the 2021 expenses paid in 2022.
The credit for these expenses will be entered on her 2022
Form 2441, line 9b.

Line 10
Credit Limit Worksheet
Complete this worksheet to figure the amount to enter on
line 10.
1. Enter the amount from Form 1040, 1040-SR, or
1040-NR, line 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2. Enter the amount from Schedule 3 (Form 1040), line 1
(foreign tax credit) and line 6l (Form 8978, line 14) . .
3. Subtract line 2 from line 1. Also enter this amount on
Form 2441, line 10. But if zero or less, stop; you can’t
take the credit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.
2.

3.

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 or 13.
• Any amount you forfeited. You forfeited an amount if
you didn't receive it because you didn't incur the expense.
Don't include amounts you expect to receive at a future
date.
• Any amount you didn't receive but are permitted by your
employer to carry forward and use in the following year.

Part III. Dependent Care Benefits
Line 12

Enter the total amount of dependent care benefits you
received in 2022. Amounts you received as an employee
should be shown in box 10 of your Form(s) W-2; however,
don’t include amounts reported in box 10 that exceed your
plan's exclusion and are therefore reported as wages in
box 1 of Form(s) W-2. If you were self-employed or a
partner, include amounts you received under a dependent
care assistance program from your sole proprietorship or
partnership. For 2022, the maximum amount is $5,000.
For married employees filing separate returns, the
maximum amount is $2,500.

Example. Under your employer's dependent care
plan, you chose to have your employer set aside $5,000
to cover your 2022 dependent care expenses. The $5,000
is shown in box 10 of your Form W-2. In 2022, 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 2023.

Line 13

If you had an employer-provided dependent care plan,
your employer may have permitted you to carry forward
any unused amount from 2020 and/or 2021 to use in
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Line 15

Line 19

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

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

Line 16

Yes. Enter your earned income (from line 18) on line 19.

Enter the total of all qualified expenses incurred in 2022
for the care of your qualifying person(s). It doesn't matter
when the expenses were paid.

No. Enter your spouse's earned income on line 19. If you
or your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in 2022,
see the instructions for lines 4 and 5.

Example. You received $2,000 in cash under your
employer's dependent care plan for 2022. The $2,000 is
shown in box 10 of your Form W-2. Only $900 of qualified
expenses were incurred in 2022 for the care of your
5-year-old dependent child. You would enter $2,000 on
line 12 and $900 on line 16.

Line 21

Enter on line 21 the maximum amount that you may
exclude for the year under your dependent care plan. For
2022, the maximum amount that can be excluded from
your income through a dependent care assistance
program is $5,000 ($2,500 if married filing separately).
Additionally, as discussed earlier in the instructions for
line 13, your employer may have amended their plan to
allow employees to carry over unused benefits from a plan
year ending in 2020 and/or 2021 to a plan year ending in
2022. Don't enter more than the maximum amount
allowed under your dependent care plan. For example, if
your dependent care plan only allows a maximum of
$4,000 to be excluded, substitute $4,000 for the $5,000
amount to enter on line 21. If your dependent care plan
uses a non-calendar plan year, only include on line 21 the
portion of the amount entered on line 13 that reflects
amounts carried over from a plan year ending in 2020
and/or 2021. Don’t include on line 21 amounts from
line 13 that are from a plan year that ended in 2022. For
additional information, see Notice 2021-26.

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 you or your spouse
was a student or disabled, see the instructions for line 19,
later.
Earned income for figuring the amount of dependent
care benefits you are able to exclude or deduct from your
income is the same as earned income for figuring the
credit as described earlier in the instructions for lines 4
and 5, however, for purposes of lines 18 and 19, earned
income doesn’t, include any dependent care benefits
shown on line 12.
You can elect to include your nontaxable combat pay in
earned income when figuring your exclusion or deduction,
even if you elect not to include it in earned income for the
EIC or the credit for child and dependent care expenses.
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. (In other words, if
one of you makes the election, the other one can also
make it but doesn't have to.) The amount of your
nontaxable combat pay should be shown in box 12 of your
Form(s) W-2 with code Q.

Line 24

Include your deductible benefits in the total entered on
Schedule C (Form 1040), line 14; Schedule E (Form
1040), line 19 or line 28; or Schedule F (Form 1040),
line 15, whichever applies.

Line 26

If line 26 is more than zero, you have taxable dependent
care benefits. Enter this amount on Form 1040, 1040-SR,
or 1040-NR, line 1e.

Lines 27 Through 31

If you are reporting dependent care benefits in Part III 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 in Part II of the form.

Special Situations

• If you are filing jointly, disregard community property
laws in determining the earned income of an individual.
• If your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in
2022, see the instructions for lines 4 and 5, earlier.

Instructions for Form 2441 (2022)

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Worksheet A. Worksheet for 2021 Expenses Paid in 2022

Keep for Your Records

Use this worksheet to figure the credit you may claim for 2021 expenses paid in 2022.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

Enter the amount reported on your 2021 Form 2441, line 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enter your 2021 qualified expenses paid in 2022 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Add the amounts on lines 1 and 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enter $8,000 if you had one qualifying person ($16,000 if you had two or more) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enter any dependent care benefits received for 2021 and deducted on your return and/or excluded
from your income (from your 2021 Form 2441, lines 24 and 25) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Subtract the amount on line 5 from the amount on line 4 and enter the result . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compare your earned income for 2021 and your spouse's earned income for 2021 and enter the
smaller amount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Compare the amounts on lines 3, 6, and 7, and enter the smallest amount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enter the amount on which you figured the credit for 2021 (from your 2021 Form 2441, line 6) . . . . . .
Subtract the amount on line 9 from the amount on line 8 and enter the result. If zero or less, stop here.
You can't increase your 2022 credit by any previous year's expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Enter your 2021 adjusted gross income (from your 2021 Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR,
line 11) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Find your 2021 adjusted gross income in the table below and enter the corresponding decimal amount
here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

IF your 2021 adjusted gross income
was:     

   THEN the decimal
amount is:
 Over:
But not over:
$0
- $125,000
.50
125,000
-  127,000
.49
127,000
-  129,000
.48
129,000
-  131,000
.47
131,000
-  133,000
.46

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

IF your 2021 adjusted gross income
was:       

Over:
$175,000
 177,000
 179,000
 181,000
 183,000

-

But not over:
$177,000
 179,000
 181,000
 183,000
 400,000

THEN the decimal
amount is:
.24
.23
.22
.21
.20

133,000
135,000
137,000
139,000
141,000

-

 135,000
 137,000
 139,000
 141,000
 143,000

.45
.44
.43
.42
.41

 400,000
 402,000
 404,000
 406,000
 408,000

-

 402,000
 404,000
 406,000
 408,000
 410,000

.19
.18
.17
.16
.15

143,000
145,000
147,000
149,000
151,000

-

 145,000
 147,000
 149,000
 151,000
 153,000

.40
.39
.38
.37
.36

 410,000
 412,000
 414,000
 416,000
 418,000

-

 412,000
 414,000
 416,000
 418,000
 420,000

.14
.13
.12
.11
.10

153,000
155,000
157,000
159,000
161,000

-

 155,000
 157,000
 159,000
 161,000
 163,000

.35
.34
.33
.32
.31

 420,000
 422,000
 424,000
 426,000
 428,000

-

 422,000
 424,000
 426,000
 428,000
 430,000

.09
.08
.07
.06
.05

163,000
165,000
167,000
169,000
171,000
173,000

-

 165,000
 167,000
 169,000
 171,000
 173,000
 175,000

.30
.29
.28
.27
.26
.25

 430,000
 432,000
 434,000
 436,000
 438,000

-

 432,000
 434,000
 436,000
 438,000
 No limit

.04
.03
.02
.01
.00

13.
14.

Multiply line 10 by line 12 and enter the amount here and on Form 2441, line 9b . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Name, address, and identifying number of persons or organizations who provided the care:

15.

First and last name and taxpayer identification number of the qualifying person that received the care:

13.

Attach to your tax return a copy of this worksheet or a statement explaining how you figured the credit for prior-year expenses that
includes all the same information that is in the worksheet, including the name, address, and taxpayer identification number of the
persons or organizations providing the care and the name and taxpayer identification number of the person for whom you paid for
care.

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Instructions for Form 2441 (2022)