ACCESS HRA Child Care Vouchers: Eligibility, Documents, and Family Share

If your household gets Cash Assistance, you can request a child care voucher directly through your ACCESS HRA account by linking it to your Cash Assistance case. Every other NYC family now applies through the city’s MyCity portal instead.¹ The voucher covers most of the cost of care for eligible households earning up to 85 percent of New York’s state median income — roughly $113,500 a year for a family of four.²

Where to Apply: ACCESS HRA or MyCity

The right portal depends on one thing: whether you currently receive Cash Assistance. If you do, log into ACCESS HRA, connect the account to your Cash Assistance case, and add the child care request from there.¹

If you don’t receive Cash Assistance, the child care application is no longer inside ACCESS HRA. You’ll create an account on MyCity, run the built-in eligibility screener, and submit the application there.¹ The New York State Office of Children and Family Services confirms that NYC residents applying online go through MyCity.³ If you’ve been hunting for the voucher application inside ACCESS HRA and can’t find it, that’s why.

Who Qualifies

Household income has to fall below 85 percent of New York’s state median income for your family size.⁴ The current annual ceilings:

Family of 2: $77,226
Family of 3: $95,397
Family of 4: $113,568
Family of 5: $131,738
Family of 6: $149,909

Working parents also have a floor. If you work ten or more hours a week, you must earn at least minimum wage, which is $16.50 an hour in NYC.²

The child normally must be under 13 at the eligibility determination. A child with special needs or one under court supervision can qualify up to 18, and a child with special needs who is a full-time student in a secondary school or equivalent vocational program can qualify up to 19.⁵ If a child turns 13 during an active eligibility period, federal rules keep them eligible through the end of that period.⁶

You Also Need a Qualifying Activity

Needing child care isn’t enough on its own. A parent in the household must be doing an approved activity:

Unsubsidized employment at or above minimum wage
Actively looking for work while registered with the NYS Department of Labor, for up to six months
Education — high school, GED, associate degree programs (up to 48 months), or a bachelor’s program expected to improve earning capacity
Occupational training approved by the State Education Department, including ESL and basic literacy
Orientation, assessment, or other work activities required under Cash Assistance⁷

You have to stay in the qualifying activity while receiving the benefit. If you lose your job, federal rules require the city to give you at least three months of continued assistance to find new work before ending your voucher.⁶

Documents to Gather Before You Start

Having your paperwork ready is the single biggest thing you can do to avoid delays. Every applicant needs:

Proof of each child’s birth — birth certificate, baptismal record, or alien registration card for every child under 18 in the home
Proof of NYC address — a current utility bill, lease, rent receipt, Section 8 award letter, or NYCHA certificate
Proof of income — recent pay stubs, or a tax return with appropriate schedules if you’re self-employed

You’ll also need documentation tied to your qualifying activity: pay stubs if you’re employed, a verification letter on official letterhead if you’re a student or trainee, temporary-address documentation if your family is experiencing homelessness, and documentation from the agency providing services if you’re in a domestic violence situation.⁸ Social Security cards for parents and children are optional but can speed processing.

Submitting the Application

Cash Assistance recipients handle everything inside ACCESS HRA. Log in, link the account to your Cash Assistance case, and follow the prompts to add a child care request.¹

Everyone else starts on MyCity. Create the account, run the eligibility screener, and open the application. Upload clear scans or phone photos of your documents. Check every field against your physical documents before submitting — names, dates, and income figures need to match exactly. Save whatever confirmation the portal gives you. You’ll want that reference number if you need to follow up.

What Happens After You Apply

The agency reviews your documents to verify income, identity, address, and your qualifying activity. NYC officials have indicated that a determination typically takes about ten to fifteen business days, though it can run longer if the agency asks for more paperwork or spots inconsistencies.

Track your case through the same portal where you applied, and watch for messages asking for additional documents. Responding fast is what keeps a case moving. Once the review finishes, you’ll receive a formal notice with the decision, the subsidy amount, and how long the benefit lasts.

What You’ll Pay: the Family Share

A voucher rarely covers 100 percent of care. Most families owe a monthly “family share” set on a sliding scale by income and family size — lower incomes pay less, higher incomes pay more. Three groups pay nothing: families currently receiving Cash Assistance, families experiencing homelessness, and foster parents.²

Your family share is locked in for the full eligibility period. Federal regulations prohibit the city from raising your co-payment mid-period even if your income changes, as long as you stay under the income ceiling.⁶ If you get a raise six months in, your family share doesn’t move until recertification.

Choosing a Provider

Vouchers can pay for care at licensed or regulated child care centers, licensed family day care homes, and approved informal providers such as relatives, neighbors, or friends.² Informal providers have to meet health and safety standards and clear background checks before they can accept voucher payments.

The state sets maximum payment rates by care type for NYC. If your provider charges more than the state maximum, you may owe the difference on top of your family share, so ask about rates before enrolling.⁹

Keeping the Voucher: 12-Month Protection and Recertification

Federal law guarantees at least 12 months of eligibility once you’re approved before the city can require recertification. During that year, your benefits continue even if your income fluctuates (as long as it stays below 85 percent of state median income), you temporarily stop working, you move within New York, or your child turns 13.⁶

The city can only end your voucher inside the 12-month window in narrow cases: you move out of New York, you have excessive unexplained absences from your provider despite the agency’s attempts to reach you, or fraud is confirmed.⁶

When recertification comes up, ACS mails a form before your deadline. Complete it and submit updated documentation showing you still meet the requirements.¹⁰ Missing the deadline creates a coverage gap, and a gap means your provider stops getting paid. Mark the date the moment the notice arrives. If your circumstances shift during the year — a new job, a move, an income change — you can use the recertification form to report the change before the annual deadline rather than waiting.

1
NYC311. Child Care Financial Assistance
2
ACCESS NYC. Child Care Vouchers
3
OCFS. Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)
4
New York State Senate. New York Social Services Law 410-W – Eligible Families
5
Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 18 415.1 – Definitions
6
eCFR. 45 CFR 98.21 – Eligibility Determination Processes
7
Cornell Law Institute. New York Comp Codes R and Regs Tit 18 415.2 – Eligibility, Guarantees
8
NYC Administration for Children’s Services. Documentation Required for Child Care Eligibility
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NYC Administration for Children’s Services. Current Voucher Providers
10
NYC Administration for Children’s Services. Forms for Families