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James Debono
As from the beginning of 2007, families who send their young children to childcare centres will benefit from a tax rebate of up to Lm400, despite the absence of a licensing procedure for this sector.
In the budget speech the Prime Minister announced the government would allow parents to deduct Lm400 from the taxable amount to make good for part of the expenses incurred in “licensed childcare centres”.
A similar measure introduced in 2003 was aborted simply because no licensing system existed at the time, but since an interim registration system is now in place, parents will still be able to benefit this time round.
As an interim measure, all parents who send their children to childcare centres registered with the Department for Social Welfare Standards will benefit from the tax rebate announced in the budget, a spokesperson for the Ministry for the Family and Social Solidarity told Business Today.
Childcare facilities are presently being registered with the department. “Registration is an important stepping stone towards the licensing of childcare facilities and the government is committed to help such facilities reach the established standards prior to implementing the licensing procedure,” the government spokesperson told Business Today.
The licensing procedure will come into force once the relevant legislation is passed through parliament.
Before instituting a licensing regime the government has given existing childcare centres up to December 2007 to upgrade their facilities according to a set of standards for childcare facilities issued in July.
These standards ensure that all childcare providers are qualified in childcare. According to the same standards, premises should be situated on a ground floor level, should include an open-air outdoor play area and should satisfy health and safety standards.
The Ministry for the Family and Social Solidarity and the Ministry for Education, Youth and Employment also launched a scheme whereby Lm130,000 were specifically allocated to help existing childcare facilities improve their standards to reach those established by government.
Interested parties had to notify the department of social welfare standards, responsible for the implementation of these standards and the administration of the above-mentioned scheme, by July 20 following which they were requested to apply for the improvement grant until October 20.
The scheme will come to an end in December 2007 by which time the participating facilities will have reached the standards set down in the agreement reached with the department.
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