CCFA Benefits
The amount of money you pay for child care depends on the size of your family and your income. This is known as the parent fee. You pay a lower fee for part-time care. If you have more than one child in care, each additional child has a discounted fee.
You can use EEC’s confidential online calculator to quickly estimate your parent fee.
You do not have to pay a parent fee if:
- You get child care through an open case with DTA or DCF,
- You are experiencing homelessness,
- You are a non-parent caregiver or guardian, OR
- Your income is below the amount in the chart below.
|
Household Size |
Maximum Monthly Income (before taxes)* |
|
2 |
$1,643 |
|
3 |
$2,072 |
|
4 |
$2,500 |
|
5 |
$2,928 |
|
6 |
$3,357 |
|
7 |
$3,785 |
|
8 |
$4,213 |
|
+ Each additional member |
$428 |
*Do not count income of a foster child or someone who gets rental assistance, SSI, child support, DTA benefits (TAFDC cash benefits, SNAP food benefits), or veteran disability benefits.
If your income is above the amount in the chart, your parent fee will be about 7% of your income. See an example of how this is calculated.
Your parent fee amount will be listed on your Financial Assistance and Fee Agreement. If you have any questions on how your parent fee was calculated, ask your family access administrator (FAA).
Additional Resources
Telling Family Access Administrators About Changes
Required Communication on Changes
When you get CCFA, you must tell your FAA about certain changes within 30 days:
- Contact information changes,
- If you move outside of Massachusetts,
- Custody Changes,
- If your work, training or education program ends (so we can work with you on getting "provisional child care"), and
- If your income goes above the gross income level (see table below).
|
Household Size |
Maximum Monthly Income (before taxes) |
|
2 |
$7,008 |
|
3 |
$8,657 |
|
4 |
$10,306 |
|
5 |
$11,955 |
|
6 |
$13,603 |
|
7 |
$13,913 |
Optional Communication on Changes
There are other things that may change in your family that you are not required to tell us about. However, it may help you to. Examples of things you can tell your FAA about:
- Opening a case with DCF or DTA,
- Your case with DTA or DCF has closed in the last 24 months,
- If your income goes down,
- If you have a child, OR
- If you are a grandparent raising a grandchild.
Reviewing your CCFA Eligibility
A CCFA eligibility review is called reauthorization. Most families have a review of eligibility every year.
Your family access administrator will give you at least two notifications when you need to renew, starting 60 days before your reauthorization is due. Your FAA may notify you by mail, phone, text, and/or email.
You can renew your eligibility in-person or virtually. As part of the review, your FAA may ask for documents to show you are still eligible. You can send the documents to your FAA by mail, fax, or electronically.
Service Need
Families must be in a recognized activity to keep their CCFA benefits when renewing eligibility. We call this a “service need.” You can meet this if you:
- Are working (including paid employment and self-employment),
- Are participating in an education, training, or job search program;
- Are experiencing homeless;
- Have experienced or experiencing domestic violence;
- Are a young parent (under age 24);
- Are retired and older than 65;
- You or your child have a documented disability; OR
- Are participating in a substance abuse treatment or rehabilitation program.
If you need an activity, you can get temporary assistance to look for one. This is called “provisional child care.” Tell your FAA if you cannot do one of the activities listed as a “service need.” They will help you look into other options to keep your assistance.