Louisiana child care assistance and free pre-K: CCAP, CCAP B-3 and LA 4 (2026)

One Baton Rouge eligibility office plus local community networks

LDOE does not pay families. It pays the provider for each authorized day of care ⁠¹⁠². Licensed Type III early learning centers, registered family child care providers, in-home providers, public and nonpublic school child care programs and military child care centers can all be certified for CCAP ⁠⁶. You can apply before choosing a provider, but LDOE will not certify your case until you name an eligible one ⁠⁶.

Locally, early childhood community networks run coordinated enrollment for publicly funded seats. A network’s lead agency makes a preliminary CCAP eligibility check during coordinated enrollment, and LDOE makes the final decision ⁠¹⁰. CCAP covers children under 13, or under 18 with a disability verified by a physician, psychologist, SSI award, IEP or IFSP. The child must be a U.S. citizen or qualified alien living in Louisiana, and must be immunized or in the process of catching up ⁠¹⁠².

The 85% SMI income test in effect since February 1, 2026

Bulletin 139 caps household income at 85% of state median income (SMI) for the family’s size ⁠¹. LDOE’s 2026 scale is based on 2025 American Community Survey SMI estimates and has applied since February 1, 2026 ⁠³⁠⁴:

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

LDOE also publishes limits for 10 to 12 people ($10,010 to $10,427). LDOE’s older household FAQ (Rev. 2/2024) still shows lower limits, such as $5,173 for three. Use the 2026 scale ⁠³⁠⁶.

Countable income is the gross earnings of the head of household, a legal or non-legal spouse, and any unemancipated minor parent in the home. It also includes recurring Social Security, SSI, VA, retirement, disability, unemployment and workers’ compensation benefits. Earnings from AmeriCorps (CNCS), college work-study and disaster-related jobs do not count ⁠¹.

The 20-hour rule and who is excused from it

The head of household must work an average of at least 20 hours a week at federal minimum wage or more. Attending job training or school for 20 hours, being a full-time student at a state- or nationally accredited institution, or any combination that averages 20 hours also qualifies ⁠¹. A parent receiving SSA or SSI disability, or VA disability rated at least 70%, is exempt. So is a parent a doctor certifies cannot care for the children ⁠¹. For a child who qualifies for special needs care, LDOE can lower the requirement to 15 hours ⁠¹.

Bulletin 139 allows 90 days of care for a parent who is looking for work. But while a CCAP waitlist is in use, job-search status is accepted only at redetermination, not for new applicants ⁠¹. Families experiencing homelessness are the main exception. They can qualify while seeking work or in a transitional living program, and they have 90 days to turn in documents ⁠¹⁠².

Who skips Louisiana’s CCAP waitlist, and how long it is

Section 513 of Bulletin 139 lists five groups that are funded immediately ⁠¹:

• Families receiving FITAP cash assistance and taking part in STEP (see Louisiana FITAP)
• Children in foster care
• Children who need special needs care
• Children experiencing homelessness
• Children in an Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership

Everyone else is screened. If eligible, they are placed on one statewide list in the order their complete application arrived. As slots open, the household that has waited longest is contacted and its eligibility is checked again ⁠¹. The LA CAFÉ portal warns that all applications are subject to placement on the waitlist ⁠⁹. LDOE may also freeze new applications when funds run short ⁠¹.

March 2026 parish totals: East Baton Rouge 1,009 children, Caddo 625, Lafayette 547, Jefferson 499, Orleans 356, Ouachita 341, St. Tammany 341, Calcasieu 321. Months after March had not been filled in when the workbook was captured in May 2026 ⁠⁵.

Families already receiving CCAP are not put back on the list. LDOE can certify a case for up to 24 months, and redetermination comes no sooner than 12 months after the last one. LDOE gives a 30-day presumptive eligibility period after your renewal date. An application received after that window is treated as a new application, which means it is screened for the waitlist ⁠¹.

What a daily copay costs at a Louisiana center

Louisiana does not set copays as a percentage of income. Each income band has a flat daily copay, shown on your CCAP 13 eligibility notice ⁠³⁠⁷:

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

All households under 65% of SMI pay $0. The copay is also waived for families experiencing homelessness, children in Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships, children with disabilities and STEP participants ⁠³.

The copay is not the whole bill. LDOE pays up to a state maximum daily rate. At a Type III center that is $31.50 for regular care, $42.00 for toddlers and $68.00 for infants. Family child care homes get $29.00, $42.00 and $61.00 ⁠¹. LDOE’s payment tool works out the family’s share child by child: the provider’s daily charge minus the state rate, plus the copay, times the service days ⁠⁷. Say a center charges $35 a day for a preschooler and your copay is $8. You would owe $11.50 a day, or $241.50 for a 21-day month. Full-time care (30 or more hours a week) is paid in days, up to 22 a month ⁠¹. For STEP and foster care cases, LDOE pays the full state maximum rate ⁠¹.

The federal requirement to cap copays at 7% of family income was repealed in May 2026 ⁠¹⁵. Louisiana’s daily scale was never written as a percentage cap. The 2026 scale LDOE posted was unchanged in the latest copy we could read (May 2026) ⁠³.

Reading a center’s Performance Profile and star rating

Louisiana’s quality rating and improvement system is built into Bulletin 140. Every publicly funded center, Head Start and school serving children from birth to 5 gets an annual Performance Profile. Its rating comes mainly from CLASS classroom observations ⁠¹⁰⁠¹⁴. Ratings use a 1-to-7 scale: Excellent (6.0-7.0), High Proficient (5.25-5.99), Proficient (4.50-5.24), Approaching Proficient (3.0-4.49) and Unsatisfactory (1.0-2.99) ⁠¹⁰. Bulletin 139 converts these scores into one to five stars. Centers serving CCAP children receive quarterly bonuses of 11% (three stars), 16.5% (four) or 23% (five) of their subsidy payments ⁠¹. You can look up profiles for every site at louisianaschools.com ⁠¹⁴.

LA 4, NSECD and Head Start: free seats for 4-year-olds

LA 4 is the state’s public school pre-K. It must be full day, with the same hours and days as the district’s regular school program ⁠¹¹. NSECD funds 4-year-old seats in BESE-approved nonpublic schools and Type III centers ⁠¹⁰. For 2026-27, a child must be 4 by September 30. LDOE’s worksheet gives the birth date range as October 1, 2021 through September 30, 2022 ⁠¹²⁠¹³. A child qualifies with family income at or below 200% FPL ($3,607 a month for two, $4,553 for three, $5,500 for four), with SNAP benefits, or while in foster care or experiencing homelessness ⁠¹²⁠¹³. LA 4 is free for these children except for lunch and before- and after-care fees. A district may charge non-qualifying families tuition on a sliding scale ⁠¹¹. Sites may not turn a child away for reasons other than age and income, including toilet training ⁠¹³.

Head Start uses lower federal limits. For 2026-27, LDOE lists $2,277 a month for a family of three at 100% FPL and $2,960 at 130% ⁠⁴. CCAP B-3 Seats are contracted full-time seats for infants through 3-year-olds. They use CCAP’s 85% SMI limit, and LDOE pays participating centers directly ⁠¹⁠⁴.

Applying for CCAP through LA CAFÉ, step by step

1. Check the two tests

   Compare your gross monthly income to the 2026 table and confirm that you average 20 hours of work or school a week. If you are in STEP, foster care or homeless, say so on the application ⁠¹⁠³.

2. Choose a CCAP-certified provider

   LDOE cannot certify your case until you name one. LDOE’s Child Care Resource and Referral agencies can help you find one ⁠²⁠⁶.

3. Gather documents

   You need birth or baptismal certificates or hospital records for every child under 18, and up to four consecutive pay stubs from the last 45 days (or an employer statement). Add tax returns if self-employed, award letters for SSI, VA or unemployment, any termination notice from the past three months, shot records, and a school schedule showing weekly hours ⁠⁸.

4. Apply online or on paper

   Use the LA CAFÉ Customer Portal, or mail the paper form to CCAP Household Eligibility, P.O. Box 260037, Baton Rouge, LA 70826, or fax it to 225-376-6060 ⁠²⁠⁶.

5. Wait for the decision

   LDOE decides within 30 days. There are no emergency benefits ⁠⁶. You will either get a CCAP 13 eligibility notice with your copay and start date, or a waitlist placement ⁠¹⁠⁷. Care used before the start date is your own expense ⁠⁶.

6. Scan in and out every day

   Your household must use LDOE’s attendance system. Your child must attend at least one day a month, and too many absences or back-dated scans can end your case with up to 24 months of ineligibility ⁠¹.

7. Report changes within 10 days

   Report it if income goes above 85% of SMI, you change providers, or a child moves out ⁠¹.

8. Dispute or ask questions

   A termination notice must give the reason and the ineligibility period. Call 1-877-453-2721 or email [email protected] ⁠¹⁠². For pre-K, you can ask LDOE to review a coordinated enrollment placement in writing within 30 days, and LDOE must answer within 30 days ⁠¹⁰.

See child care assistance in other states or other help in Louisiana.