What are specified Adult Childcare Credits?

Specified Adult Childcare National Insurance (NI) Credits contribute towards State Pension entitlement. A person caring for a family member’s child (under 12 years of age), usually whilst the parent is working, can get these NI credits.

The system works by transferring the NI credit that is attached to Child Benefit from the Child Benefit recipient to the family member who is providing childcare for a related child under 12 years of age.

You have to be under state pension age to get these credits and you apply for them once a year (usually in October at the earliest) for the previous tax year. So, if you apply in October 2022, you’d be applying for credits for tax year 2021/2022.

As the person providing childcare is taking the NI credit away from the Child Benefit recipient (usually a parent), the child’s parent must have paid NI credits through an alternative method (e.g., employment) for the same period in order for the NI credit to be transferred to the family member who is providing the childcare.

More information, such as what constitutes a family member can be found on the GOV.uk website.