Guidelines to Apply for Child Care Services

To apply for financial child care assistance click here.

Are You Eligible for Child Care Services?

The child care services program provides scholarships for child care for low-income families, promoting long-term self-sufficiency by enabling parents to work or attend workforce training or education activities. It also educates parents about the availability of quality child care, which enhances children's early learning. Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas Child Care Services (CCS) maintains agreements with a wide range of child care providers in order to meet the needs of families receiving services. In order to receive assistance, families must meet federal, state, and local guidelines.

Basic Eligibility Requirements

• Child care must be needed for a child from ages birth through twelve, or a child with a documented disability through age eighteen.
• Proof of residency in one of the following counties: Collin, Denton, Ellis, Erath, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Navarro, Palo Pinto, Parker, Rockwall, Somervell and Wise.
• If you are homeless and you do not have a permanent, fixed, and adequate residence.
• Proof of U.S. citizenship or legal immigration status for each child on whose behalf you're applying for child care scholarships (birth certificate, alien registration card I-551, etc.).
• Training information for all adult household members to include name, address, phone number, name of the school, hours enrolled, total hours completed, transcript.
• Income (pay stubs) for the last thirteen weeks for all working household members.
• Family assets do not exceed $1 million.

If you are experiencing homelessness, you may be eligible for child care. Homelessness is defined in the McKinney-Vento Act as children who are lacking a nighttime residence that is fixed, regular, and adequate. This includes children who:

• are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason;
• are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations;
• are living in emergency or transitional shelters;
• are abandoned in hospitals;
• have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings;
• are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and
• are migratory children who qualify as homeless because they are living in circumstances described above.

Fixed means stationary, permanent, and not subject to change.

Regular means consistent; used on a regular (e.g., nightly) basis.

Adequate means sufficient for meeting both the physical and psychological needs typically met in home environments

Work/Training and Educational Requirements

Families may be eligible for assistance with child care costs if you work, or attend an education or vocation training program for a minimum average of 25 hours per week for a single-parent family and 50 hours per week for a two-parent family or if you are searching for employment. If attending job training or educational program, the parent must show progress toward successful completion of the program, which is demonstrated through continued enrollment in the program at the time of eligibility determination.

Parents Attending Educational Programs

If a parent is enrolled full-time in a postsecondary undergraduate education program, then Boards must ensure that CCS is provided for and does not exceed a cumulative total of 60 months. This limitation applies to parents who are meeting participation requirements by postsecondary education only. Parents who are both working and attending an educational program are not subject to the cumulative 60-month limit.

Making Progress toward Successful Completion of the Job Training or Educational Program 

Child Care Services may request participation information from parents or training providers to determine continued enrollment in the program and whether the parent is making progress toward completion of an education or training program. 
Past performance or attendance in an education or job training program while not participating in CCS must not be considered in determining initial eligibility for child care. A parent’s progress toward completion of the education or job training program must be based only on the parent’s performance while receiving child care, as a lack of stable child care could contribute to a parent’s inability to work toward successful completion of the education or training activity.
 

Initial Job Search Eligibility Requirements

Families who do not meet the minimum participation requirements for At-Risk child care initial eligibility shall qualify for child care while searching for work that will meet the minimum activity requirements.

• Parents enrolling under an initial job search must self-attest they are not meeting the participation requirement and have registered on Work in Texas.
• A job search is limited to three months. Child Care Services will continue following this three-month period, if, by the end of the three months, the family meets income eligibility and the following activity requirements:
  • 25 hours for a single parent, with at least 12 hours in employment; or 50 hours combined for dual-parent families, with at least 25 combined hours in employment
  • At the end of the initial three months of eligibility, if the family still does not meet minimum activity requirements, care will be terminated.  

Income Guidelines

In addition to working or being in training, the family’s gross monthly income must be less than that shown below.

Family Size	Gross Monthly Income
2	$4,550
3	$5,621
4	$6,691
5	$7,762
6	$8,833
7	$9,033
8	$9,234
9	$9,435
10	$9,636