Florida child care assistance: School Readiness, SR Plus and free VPK (2026-27)

How DEL, 30 coalitions and RCMA split School Readiness in Florida

School Readiness pays toward care for children from birth to age 13 ⁠². Parents can choose private centers and schools, public schools or family child care homes, as long as the provider holds a School Readiness contract ⁠⁸. Payment goes to the provider. The coalition subtracts your copay from the provider’s payment, and you pay that copay to the provider ⁠⁵. Every application, for both School Readiness and VPK, goes through one statewide system, Florida’s Early Learning Family Portal. Your coalition handles everything after you submit it ⁠⁴⁠¹³.

Family income means the combined gross income of every household member aged 18 or older, earned or unearned. SNAP benefits and housing assistance paid directly to a landlord do not count ⁠¹. Child support received, Social Security, reemployment assistance and Temporary Cash Assistance do count as unearned income ⁠³. Families must also certify that their assets do not exceed $1 million ⁠³.

The 55% SMI entry limit the 2025 Legislature set

The 2025 Legislature changed the statutory definition of “economically disadvantaged” from 150% of the federal poverty level to 55% of state median income (SMI) ⁠¹. DEL’s School Readiness sliding fee schedule took effect July 1, 2026 and uses the federal FFY 2027 SMI estimates. It sets $49,952 a year for a family of three and $59,467 for a family of four as the entry limits ⁠⁶. Some coalition pages are not fully updated: Broward’s FAQ still mentions the old 150% of poverty test next to the new 55% figures ⁠⁷.

The income chart applies to working families. Children referred by the Department of Children and Families (DCF) as at-risk, children of parents in the Welfare Transition Program, and children of parents with workforce training accounts qualify through a referral or child care authorization rather than the income chart ⁠³.

Staying on after you earn more: the 85% SMI ceiling and School Readiness Plus

After you are approved, you are authorized for 12 months. During that period you stay eligible even if your income rises, as long as it stays at or below 85% SMI. Illness, a seasonal layoff, a school break or reduced hours do not end your care ⁠³. At redetermination, a family above 55% but at or below 85% SMI stays in the program in “graduated phase-out” for another 12 months ⁠⁵.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Source: DEL sliding fee schedule, FFY 2027 SMI estimates ⁠⁶. The same schedule lists 70% SMI ($63,575 for three) as the entry threshold for School Readiness Match. Ask your coalition whether it runs Match.

If your income is above 85% SMI at redetermination, the coalition must tell you about the School Readiness Plus Program ⁠⁵. Under §1002.935, SR Plus covers families between 85% and 100% of SMI. It pays a percentage of the coalition’s provider rate, and the family pays a rising copay plus any cost above the subsidy. It depends on a legislative appropriation and is first-come, first-served ⁠⁹.

Florida’s percentage copay: 4% or 6% of income, under a 7% rule cap

DEL’s current schedule is based on percentages. Full-time care costs 4.0% of family income for families at or below 55% SMI and 6.0% above that. Part-time care is 2.0% and 3.0%. A family with no income pays nothing ⁠⁶. Each family makes one copayment to one provider, no matter how many children are in care ⁠⁵.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

The coalition’s eligibility system converts your rate into the daily fee shown on your payment certificate ⁠⁶⁠⁵. Providers may charge additional fees on top of the copay ⁠⁵.

Rule 6M-4.400 caps copays at 7% of family income regardless of how many children are in care ⁠⁵. The federal requirement to cap copays at 7% was repealed by a final rule published May 12, 2026 and effective July 13, 2026 ⁠¹⁵. Florida’s cap comes from its own rule, so it still applies. During the first 12-month period your copay cannot go up. It can go down if a change in income, work status or family size lowers it, and it is recalculated if your authorized hours change ⁠⁵. A coalition may waive the copay for an at-risk child. It may also waive it temporarily if your income is at or below the poverty level, or after a natural disaster, homelessness, incarceration, residential treatment, a house fire or burglary, or while you attend parenting classes or Head Start ⁠¹². You cannot move your child to another provider until your copay balance is paid or you have a repayment plan ⁠⁵.

Who comes off a coalition waiting list first

Section 1002.87 sets the service order ⁠²:

• First: children under 13 of parents who receive Temporary Cash Assistance and are subject to federal work requirements, or who have an Intensive Service Account or Individual Training Account through the workforce system.
• Second: at-risk children under 9. This includes children in DCF investigations, diversion or supervision; children of domestic violence victims served by a certified center; and children in a DCF-certified homeless shelter ⁠¹.
• Then, by local priority: children from birth to kindergarten from economically disadvantaged working families; children of parents moving from the work program into jobs; at-risk children aged 9 to 12; other economically disadvantaged children under 13; and children with documented special needs.

Within each category, the coalition ranks families by approved application date, household income and the child’s age ⁠⁴. You must revalidate your information at least every six months, and the coalition gives 30 days’ notice before each revalidation. The coalition checks funding at least monthly and sends enrollment notices within 30 days after it finds money available ⁠⁴. Broward’s coalition does not tell families their list position ⁠⁷. If a coalition has to cut enrollment, it removes children in reverse priority order, starting with the highest incomes, and gives two weeks’ notice ⁠².

The 20-hour test and what counts as a purpose for care

A “working family” has a single parent who works or attends eligible education at least 20 hours a week. Two-parent families need 40 combined hours. If one parent cannot work because of age or a disability documented by a physician, the other parent needs 20 hours ⁠¹. Broward accepts GED, high school, technical and vocational programs, and associate’s or bachelor’s degrees as education ⁠⁷. If you lose your job or leave school, you get a 3-month period to start a new activity. Care continues at the same level during that period, and you can use this period more than once ⁠³. You must report changes in address, work, school, family size, or income above 85% SMI within 14 calendar days ⁠³. More than 10 unexplained absences in a month can end care early ⁠³.

Applying through the Family Portal, step by step

1. Check the two limits

   Compare your gross annual income with the 55% SMI chart (for example, $49,952 for three) and confirm the 20-hour or 40-hour activity requirement ⁠⁶⁠¹.

2. Create a Family Portal account

   Go to familyservices.floridaearlylearning.com and sign up with an email address. If you have applied before, sign in with your existing account ⁠⁷⁠⁴.

3. Answer the prequalifying questions

   They screen family size, income and purpose for care, then open the application if you appear eligible ⁠⁴.

4. Upload proof of purpose for care

   Upload two current, consecutive pay stubs per job showing hours and pay rate (or an employer verification form for a new job), a work calendar if self-employed, or a school schedule on letterhead ⁠⁷.

5. Wait up to 20 calendar days for review

   The coalition must review your application within 20 calendar days and tell you whether you are potentially eligible. If funding is not available, you are placed on the waiting list ⁠⁴.

6. Respond to every notice

   Check email, including spam. Missing a revalidation or funding deadline removes you from the list; reapplying gives you a new list date ⁠⁴⁠⁷.

7. Submit eligibility documents within 30 days

   After a funding notice, send recent pay stubs, proof of residency and identification for your children through the portal. Broward’s coalition does not accept documents by email ⁠⁷.

8. Sign the payment certificate and choose a provider

   The certificate lists the provider, authorized hours, start and end dates, and your copay. Both you and the provider sign it ⁠³.

9. Ask about appeals in writing

   Coalitions must post their copay waiver policies ⁠⁵ and give two weeks’ written notice, with the reason, before ending care ⁠³. Ask yours for its written review procedure.

Program assessment scores and Gold Seal: judging a School Readiness provider

Instead of star ratings, Florida requires every School Readiness provider that serves children from birth to kindergarten to have a program assessment that observes teacher-child interactions in half of its classrooms at each age level. It must reach a composite score of at least 4.00 to hold a contract ⁠¹⁰. A coalition can waive this minimum only if the provider is needed for local capacity, and the provider must then follow a quality improvement plan ⁠¹⁰. Under Rule 6M-4.500, effective June 17, 2026, providers scoring 5.00 to 5.99 receive a 7% Quality Performance Incentive above the coalition’s rate, and those scoring 6.00 to 7.00 receive 10% ⁠¹¹. Providers with a current Gold Seal Quality Care designation receive a separate rate differential ⁠¹¹. Ask a provider for its latest composite score and whether it holds Gold Seal.

VPK: free pre-K for every 4-year-old, separate from the subsidy

VPK has no income test. Your child must live in Florida and turn 4 on or before September 1 of the school year. If the fourth birthday falls between February 2 and September 1, you may wait and enroll the next year, at age 5 ⁠¹³. You can choose between two formats ⁠¹³⁠¹⁴:

• School-year VPK: 540 instructional hours, with up to 11 children per lead instructor or 20 with an assistant. Instructors need at least a Florida Child Care Professional Credential.
• Summer VPK: 300 instructional hours, with up to 12 children per instructor. Instructors must hold a bachelor’s degree.

Children with an IEP can use the VPK Specialized Instructional Services option instead ⁠¹³. VPK providers cannot charge for VPK hours. They also cannot require you to buy before- or after-care as a condition of enrolling your child ⁠¹⁴. A child in VPK can also receive School Readiness for the remaining hours if the family qualifies ⁠². You apply for VPK in the same Family Portal and can enroll with a private provider or a public school ⁠¹³.