Idaho child care assistance: ICCP income limits, copays and pre-K (2026)

How ICCP works inside Idaho’s Department of Health and Welfare

ICCP pays part of the cost of care so parents can work, go to school or complete training. DHW pays the provider either the provider’s usual rate or the Local Market Rate (LMR), whichever is lower, minus your copay ⁠¹. LMRs are maximum monthly amounts that depend on the child’s age, the type of care and where the provider is located. They come from a market survey run every three years ⁠¹. Since July 1, 2025, DHW has set them at the 65th percentile of its 2024 survey for all age groups ⁠⁴. ICCP can also pay a one-time registration fee of up to $250 ⁠¹.

You can choose a child care center (13 or more children), group care (7 to 12), family care (6 or fewer), a relative caring for 6 or fewer related children, or in-home care ⁠¹. DHW approves in-home care only if you have three or more ICCP-eligible children not in school, if no out-of-home care is available at your hours or in your area, or if a child’s illness or disability makes group care risky. You must pay an in-home caregiver at least minimum wage ⁠¹. The provider must be registered with ICCP ⁠².

The 130% poverty entry test, and why the rule still says 175%

Under IDAPA 16.06.12.070, a new applicant’s income may not exceed 175% of the federal poverty guidelines ⁠¹. DHW paused new enrollment on August 22, 2024 to avoid a deficit it projected at more than $15 million. When it reopened applications on January 13, 2025, it set the threshold for new families at 130% of poverty ⁠⁴⁠⁵. The rule text was never changed, but DHW’s posted limits have been set at 130% ever since:

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Monthly limits are from DHW ⁠². Yearly figures are the monthly limit times 12. Shares of state median income (SMI) are our estimates, based on the federal fiscal year 2027 SMI figures Idaho’s LIHEAP uses (60% of SMI is $4,581 a month for three) ⁠¹⁵. DHW does not publish a one-person limit. As of October 20, 2026, DHW had not posted a chart based on the 2026 poverty guidelines.

DHW counts gross earned and unearned income. It excludes grants, scholarships and work-study pay, loans, TAFI and AABD cash, tax refunds and Earned Income Tax Credits, foster care and adoption assistance payments, and a dependent child’s earnings. It deducts court-ordered child support that you actually pay ⁠¹. Family assets cannot exceed $1,000,000 ⁠¹.

Staying enrolled: 85% of median income and the phase-out

During your eligibility period, ICCP ends only if countable income goes above 85% of SMI for your family size ⁠¹. For a family of three, that works out to about $6,490 a month, based on the same LIHEAP SMI figures ⁠¹⁵. DHW redetermines eligibility at least every 12 months. At redetermination, a family above the entry limit may get a graduated phase-out of up to 12 months ⁠¹. DHW’s 2024 announcement said current families would not face the lower 130% threshold until they recertified, and that a phase-out plan was in preparation ⁠⁴.

Under IDAPA 16.06.12.600, you must report a move, a change in household members, a new provider, or income above the limits by the 10th of the month after the change ⁠¹. Idaho’s federal compliance plan admits that this rule requires more reporting than federal law allows. It says DHW notices already use 85% of SMI as the income reporting point ⁠⁶.

Work, school and training that count as qualifying activities

Every parent in the household must need care because of a qualifying activity ⁠¹:

• Employment paid at least the state or federal minimum wage. AmeriCorps and VISTA service count.
• Self-employment as a sole proprietor. After 12 months, DHW counts the lesser of your actual hours or your net monthly income divided by the federal minimum wage.
• Accredited education or training. Online classes do not count. Post-baccalaureate classes alone do not count. Post-secondary study counts for no more than 48 months in total.
• Child welfare preventive services, rechecked at least every three months, or a TAFI Personal Responsibility Contract.

The rule sets no minimum number of hours. Your projected monthly hours decide whether DHW pays for full-time or part-time care ⁠¹. If you lose your job or leave school, care can continue for up to three months while you look for work or re-enroll ⁠¹. In a two-parent home, an incapacitated parent does not need an activity if the other parent has one. A single parent who is incapacitated cannot qualify ⁠¹.

Senate Bill 1419 (2026) would have written ICCP into the Idaho Code. It would also have required 30 hours of work a week for a single parent, lowered the entry limit to 135% of poverty and halved the asset cap to $500,000 ⁠⁹. The Senate rejected it 11-23-1 on March 26, 2026, so IDAPA 16.06.12 still governs ⁠⁸.

Who gets served first when ICCP enrollment is limited

During the 2024 enrollment pause, DHW kept enrolling five groups: families experiencing homelessness, families caring for a child with a disability, foster families, families receiving Temporary Assistance for Families in Idaho (TAFI), and families receiving preventive services through child welfare ⁠⁵. When applications reopened, DHW said it would start a waitlist no later than July 2025 and that priority groups would not be placed on it ⁠⁴. Idaho’s CCDF compliance plan listed building that waitlist as a July 1, 2025 task ⁠⁶. DHW’s application page does not say whether a waitlist is in effect as of October 2026 ⁠². Ask when you apply. Separately, IDAPA 16.06.12.705 lets DHW reduce benefits if it projects a funding shortfall ⁠¹.

What Idaho parents pay: copays, rate gaps and the 7% cap

Every family pays a copay except TAFI families in non-employment TAFI activities and guardians of foster children ⁠¹. The copay depends on your income and activity in the month of care, and providers may not waive it ⁠¹. A post-secondary student who works 10 or more hours a week, or a high school or GED student, pays a copay based on family income. A post-secondary student who works fewer than 10 hours must also pay a copay ⁠¹. If your provider charges more than the state rate, you also pay the difference ⁠³. ICCP can keep paying for up to one calendar month while your child is out of care, if you would otherwise lose the slot and plan to return ⁠¹.

DHW posts its copay chart through a document server that refused every connection during our check, so specific copay amounts are not reproduced here. Your approval notice shows your copay ⁠³. In Idaho’s CCDF plan, federal reviewers found that Idaho did not limit all copays to 7% of family income. They gave the state a waiver through August 1, 2026, and DHW planned to change its eligibility system to apply a 7% cap by that date ⁠⁶. A federal final rule published May 12, 2026 and effective July 13, 2026 repealed the 7% requirement altogether ⁠⁷. We could not confirm whether DHW went ahead with the cap.

Quality Achievers: Idaho’s new rating system for ICCP providers

IdahoSTARS launched Quality Achievers in May 2025, replacing the earlier Steps to Quality system ⁠¹². Participation is voluntary. A program must be a licensed home or center, hold ICCP certification and keep an account in the RISE online system ⁠¹¹. Programs that meet the baseline Quality Essentials are recognized as a “Growing Star.” Programs that also earn some of the seven Quality STAR Achievements are recognized as a “Star Achiever.” The seven areas are business practices; health, safety and wellness; environments, curriculum and instruction; child development; partnerships with families and community; Pyramid Model (EC-PBIS); and national accreditation ⁠¹¹. Participating programs get coaching, assessments and incentive funding ⁠¹¹. Every ICCP provider must also complete health and safety training within a 90-day orientation period and then every year ⁠¹.

No state pre-K in Idaho: what 3- and 4-year-olds can get

Idaho does not fund a state preschool program. The 2025 NIEER yearbook reports state pre-K enrollment of 0, and Idaho received a $10,602,330 federal Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5) for early childhood systems work ⁠¹⁴. Public school starts with kindergarten: a child must turn 5 on or before September 1 of that school year ⁠¹³. A child with a disability who qualifies under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) reaches school age at 3, so your school district must provide free special education preschool services ⁠¹³. ICCP can still help pay for a licensed preschool or child care program for a child under 13, but not for services during the kindergarten school day ⁠¹.

Applying through DHW Self-Reliance Programs, step by step

1. Check your income and activity

   Compare your gross monthly income with the 130% chart above. Confirm that each parent works, is in an in-person accredited program, or is in a TAFI or preventive-services plan ⁠¹⁠².

2. Choose an ICCP-registered provider

   You need a provider registered with ICCP before benefits can be paid ⁠². For referrals, call the Idaho CareLine at 2-1-1.

3. Gather documents

   You will need ID, proof of household income, your current monthly child care costs and, if it applies, each child’s immigration status ⁠². Children must be immunized, unless they attend school ⁠¹.

4. Apply

   Call 877-456-1233 or visit a DHW field office for an interview. You can also download the application and send it by email to [email protected], by fax to 866-434-8278, or by mail to Self Reliance Programs, P.O. Box 83720, Boise, ID 83720-0026 ⁠².

5. Send verifications within 30 days

   DHW date-stamps your application. If anything requested is missing after 30 days, you must reapply. DHW must approve or deny within 30 days and tell you in writing ⁠¹.

6. Pay your copay and report changes

   Pay your copay to the provider every month. Report changes by the 10th of the month after they happen ⁠¹⁠³.

7. Appeal if you disagree

   You have 30 days from the date on your notice to request a fair hearing. You can file by form, letter, email, fax or phone, and most hearings are held by phone ⁠¹⁰.

Families on TAFI should also read Idaho cash assistance. You can compare other states on the child care assistance page or see more help in Idaho.