Ontario Helping Parents Save on the Costs of Summer Camp

The CARE Tax Credit is One of the Most Flexible Child Care Initiatives Ever Introduced in the Province

MIDLAND — Ontario parents and caregivers should save their receipts from day camp and summer camp for the opportunity to save come tax time. Thanks to the new Ontario Childcare Access and Relief from Expenses (CARE) tax credit, parents could receive up to 75 per cent of their eligible child care expenses for a wide range of options, including care in centres, homes and camps.

Rod Phillips, Minister of Finance, Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, and Jill Dunlop, Associate Minister of Children’s and Women’s Issues, and MPP for Simcoe North were at the YMCA of Simcoe to encourage parents to apply for the new CARE tax credit. Thanks to the flexibility built into the tax credit, CARE will increase access to child care options for parents while respecting their choices in deciding what’s best for their kids.

“This tax credit will help parents with costs and allow them to choose from a broad range of child care options, such as services provided by people in their own homes to those available through schools or places of worship. It will keep parents at the centre of the child care decision-making process,” said Minister Phillips.

Starting in the 2021 tax-year, the credit would also be available for eligible families through regular advance payments during the year, helping parents better manage child care expenses as they are incurred.

The CARE tax credit will be on top of the existing Child Care Expense Deduction (CCED) and focus support to low- and moderate-income families. The CARE tax credit will provide about $1,250 per family, on average, in new child care support to about 300,000 families. The maximum amount available will be higher for families with a child dealing with a severe disability, with no age restrictions.

“We know that child care is expensive for middle-class families, which is why we are delivering relief for parents in our province,” said Minister Lecce. “Our Government is committed to increasing access to child care and giving parents more financial support and more choice – to put them, and not government – at the centre of the child care decision-making process.”

Ontario government is also working with its school board partners to support the expansion of new school buildings and child care spaces.

“Currently, families in my riding of Simcoe North who are in need of child care may have few affordable options beyond subsidized day care centres, which may have a long wait list,” said Minister Dunlop. “Our government recognizes that need and I’m glad they have this tax credit to provide relief on eligible child care expenses.”

Quick Facts

The CARE tax credit will be available in addition to the CCED, which provides provincial and federal tax relief toward eligible child care expenses.
Families will be able to claim the CARE tax credit, starting with the 2019 tax year, and will not have to gather any additional information other than what they would have needed to claim the CCED when filing their tax returns. For example, parents will need to continue to keep receipts for their child care expenses.
The CARE tax credit will support families with incomes of up to $150,000.
The CARE tax credit is in addition to an investment of up to $1 billion over the next five years to create up to 30,000 child care spaces in schools.
The CARE tax credit builds on Ontario’s commitment to help low-income workers through the Low-income Individuals and Families Tax (LIFT) Credit, which provides low-income workers, including those making minimum wage, up to $850 ($1,700 for couples) in tax relief.