What Is Illinois CCAP and How Do You Qualify?

You qualify for Illinois CCAP eligibility if your family’s gross monthly income is at or below 225% of the Federal Poverty Level for your household size, every parent or guardian is working, in school, or in an approved training program, and your children under 13 need care while you do that activity.¹ The Child Care Assistance Program, run by the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) through local Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agencies, pays most of your child care bill directly to your provider; you cover a sliding-scale copayment.² You also need to live in Illinois.

Income Limits by Family Size

The income test uses gross monthly income — everything you earn before taxes and deductions — and combines both parents’ earnings in a two-parent household, including households where two adults share a common child.³

These caps took effect July 1, 2025. The first number is the ceiling for new applicants (225% FPL); the second is the ceiling that applies when you renew (275% FPL):

Family of 2: $3,966 / $4,847
Family of 3: $4,997 / $6,107
Family of 4: $6,028 / $7,368
Family of 5: $7,059 / $8,628
Family of 6: $8,091 / $9,889

The higher renewal cap exists so a small raise doesn’t knock you off benefits right after you’ve enrolled. If your income at renewal lands between 275% FPL and 85% of the State Median Income, IDHS gives you an additional three months at the highest copayment for your family size before closing the case.⁴

What Doesn’t Count Against You

Several income types are exempt, and this list surprises people more often than the dollar caps do. Child support you receive doesn’t count. Neither does alimony. Also exempt: SNAP benefits, tax refunds (including the Earned Income Tax Credit), student loans and educational grants, gifts, lottery winnings, lump-sum inheritances, capital gains, income earned by your children, and non-recurring pay like bonuses, overtime, or vacation payouts outside your regular base pay.⁵

If you assumed child support or a one-time bonus pushed you over the limit, run the numbers again before deciding you don’t qualify.

What You Must Be Doing: Work, School, or Training

Income alone doesn’t get you in. Every parent or guardian in the household has to be engaged in a qualifying activity. CCAP exists so you have care while you work or study, not as a general child care benefit.

The qualifying activities are employment (including self-employment), education (GED prep, ESL, adult basic education, vocational programs, or undergraduate college courses), and activities approved by your TANF caseworker if you receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.¹

Your child must be under 13. Children with documented special needs can qualify through age 19.¹

If School Is Your Activity

Students face additional rules that depend on what kind of program they’re in. IDHS splits educational activities into tiers:⁶

Below post-secondary (GED, ESL, adult basic education) and vocational programs: no work requirement for the first 24 non-consecutive months. Starting in month 25, you must work at least 20 hours per week.
Post-secondary (college courses toward an associate’s or bachelor’s degree): no work requirement for the first 48 non-consecutive months. From month 49 on, you need at least 20 hours of weekly employment.

CCAP also pays for study time: up to one hour per week for each classroom hour or credit hour. A 15-credit semester generates up to 15 hours of weekly study-time care on top of your class hours.

You have to keep your grades up. Post-secondary students who don’t work need a 2.5 GPA; if you work 20 or more hours per week while in college, the bar drops to 2.0. Below post-secondary and vocational students need a “C” average where the institution uses that scale. Falling short doesn’t cut you off immediately — you get one eligibility period to recover.⁶

How to Apply

The application is Form IL444-3455, available on the IDHS website or from your local CCR&R.⁷ Before you start, pull together:

Two pay stubs with pay dates no more than 60 days old from the date your application is received (90 days if you’re paid monthly). They don’t need to be consecutive.⁸
Social Security numbers for household members.
Employer contact information and your work or school schedule showing the hours you need care.
A current class schedule or transcript if school is your qualifying activity.
Your chosen provider’s information. You and the provider each sign your sections of the form before it’s submitted.

Self-employed applicants verify income differently: submit your most recent signed federal tax return with all schedules and attachments. After April 15 each year, only the prior year’s return is accepted. If you don’t have a tax return yet because the business is new, you can submit a monthly statement of earnings and expenses; IDHS offers Form IL 444-2790 for this but doesn’t require it.⁸

Submit the package to your local CCR&R or to a child care center or home that holds a direct contract with IDHS. You can hand it in, mail it, fax it, or apply digitally through the Application for Benefits Eligibility (ABE) portal. Your application can be backdated up to seven days from the date the CCR&R receives it. If the agency asks for more information after reviewing your file, you have 10 business days to respond; miss that deadline and your application is denied.⁹

There’s no published turnaround time for a decision. The best thing you can do to avoid delay is submit a complete package with every signature and document the first time.

Your Copayment

CCAP rarely covers the full cost of care. You’ll owe a monthly copayment set on a sliding scale tied to your income and family size. Families with the lowest incomes pay the least, and the amount climbs as earnings rise. Families below 100% FPL generally pay a minimal copayment.

Not paying your copayment can cost you your benefits even after you’ve been approved. Your exact amount appears on your approval notice (Form IL444-3455A), and you can appeal it if you think it was calculated wrong.¹⁰

Keeping Your Benefits

CCAP eligibility runs for 12 months at a time. Before your approval period ends, IDHS mails a redetermination form. Return it within 30 days of your eligibility period ending and you’re reviewed under the higher 275% FPL cap. Wait longer than 30 days and you’re treated as a new applicant at the 225% threshold.⁴

Federal law protects you during the 12-month cycle. Under 45 CFR 98.21, your child stays eligible for the full period despite temporary changes in your work or school status, as long as your income stays below 85% of the State Median Income.¹¹ A child who turns 13 mid-cycle also keeps coverage until the next redetermination.

Between redeterminations, you must report certain changes within 30 calendar days: income that rises above 85% SMI, a temporary or permanent loss of your qualifying activity, address or contact changes, and provider changes. If you switch from employment to school or the other way around, notify your CCR&R. Routine income fluctuations below 85% SMI don’t need to be reported.¹²

If You’re Denied

If your application is denied, your benefits are canceled, or you disagree with your copayment, you have 60 days from the date on the notice to file an appeal. If the 60th day falls on a weekend or holiday, you have through the next business day.¹⁰

You can file through the ABE portal at abe.illinois.gov, by calling IDHS at (800) 435-0774, or by sending a written request to your local IDHS office, your CCR&R, or the Bureau of Assistance Hearings in Chicago. IDHS must issue a final decision within 90 days, though that clock can extend if the delay is on your side. Missing the 60-day window waives your hearing rights entirely, so file quickly even if you’re still gathering documentation.¹⁰

1
Illinois Department of Human Services. CCAP Eligibility/How to Apply
2
Illinois Department of Human Services. Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)
3
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 01.02.01 – Income Guidelines, 2025-07-01
4
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 01.02.01 – Income Guidelines, 2022-07-01
5
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 01.02.03 – Exempt Income
6
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 01.03.03 – Education and Training Activities
7
Illinois Department of Human Services. Child Care Assistance Program Application IL444-3455
8
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 01.03.02 – Employment
9
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 4611 – Child Care Assistance Program: Parents Guide
10
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 04.04.01 – Appeals
11
Administration for Children and Families. CCDF Final Rule: Understanding Subsidy Eligibility
12
Illinois Department of Human Services. IDHS 04.06.01 – Change in Information – Parent