Updated October 18, 2026. Quick answer: Lines A and B are two check boxes above Part I: one for married filing separately and one for deemed income when you or your spouse was a student or disabled. Line 1 lists each person or organization that provided the care, with name, address, identifying number, household employee answer and amount paid. You get these facts from the provider, often on Form W-10.
What lines A and B ask for
Line A on the form begins “You can’t claim a credit for child and dependent care expenses if your filing status is married filing separately unless you meet the requirements listed in the instructions under Married Persons Filing Separately.” The instructions say “If your filing status is married filing separately and you meet the requirements to claim the credit for child and dependent care expenses, you must check the box on line A.”
The three requirements are listed in the instructions: “You lived apart from your spouse during the last 6 months of 2025.” “Your home was the qualifying person’s main home for more than half of 2025.” “You paid more than half of the cost of keeping up that home for 2025.” For a spouse who is not filing jointly, the filing status question is explained on the filing status in the year of divorce page.
Line B is for deemed income: “If you or your spouse was a student or was disabled during the year and you’re entering deemed income of $250 or $500 a month on Form 2441, line 4, 5, 18, or 19”, the instructions say to check the box on line B. The rules for that income are on the lines 3 to 6 page.
What line 1 asks for
The instructions say “Complete columns (a) through (e) for each person or organization that provided the care.” The columns are name, address, identifying number, whether the provider was your household employee, and the amount paid. The heading for Part I is “Persons or Organizations Who Provided the Care”.
On getting the facts: “You can use Form W-10, Dependent Care Provider’s Identification and Certification, or any other source listed in its instructions to get the information from the care provider.” The stakes are stated this way: “If you don’t give correct or complete information, your credit (and exclusion, if applicable) may be disallowed unless you can show you used due diligence in trying to get the required information.”
Each column
Columns (a) and (b) are the provider’s name and address. If you were covered by your employer’s dependent care plan and your employer furnished the care, the instructions say to “enter your employer’s name in column (a).” For column (c) the instructions say “If the care provider is an individual, enter their SSN or individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN). Otherwise, enter the provider’s employer identification number (EIN).”
Column (d) asks “to indicate whether or not the care provider listed in column (a) was your household employee during the year.” The instructions give the contrast: “For example, nannies are generally household employees, while daycare centers are not.” Household employment taxes are explained on the Schedule 2 line 9 page.
Column (e) says “Enter the total amount you actually paid in 2025 to the care provider.” The instructions add “It doesn’t matter when the expenses were incurred.” and “Don’t reduce this amount by any reimbursement you received.”
More than three providers
The instructions say “If you have more than three care providers, check the box above line 1 and attach a statement to your return with the required information.” They continue “In this situation, all the lines on line 1 of Form 2441 must be completed with information for the three highest paid providers.”
Where the number comes from
Line 1 comes from the provider and from your own payment records, not from another tax form. The household employee question links to the wages you may have reported on the Form 1040 line 1b page.
Where it goes next
Below line 1 the form asks “Did you receive dependent care benefits?” and answers with “Complete only Part II below.” and “Complete Part III on page 2 next.” Part II begins with line 2, covered on its own page. For the whole form see Form 2441.
Edition and line numbers
This page reads the 2025 Form 2441 (Child and Dependent Care Expenses) and its 2025 instructions, the current files irs.gov served on 2026-10-18. They are the files for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. The form says “Attach to Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR.” Check the tax year printed on the form you are filling in and use the line numbers on that year’s form, because a different year’s form can number or word its lines differently.
Common mistakes
- Listing a spouse or a claimed dependent as a provider. The instructions say “No credit is allowed for any amount paid to your spouse, the parent of your qualifying child, or a person whom you can claim as a dependent.”
- Leaving out provider details because the provider will not give them. The instructions say “If you don’t give correct or complete information, your credit (and exclusion, if applicable) may be disallowed unless you can show you used due diligence in trying to get the required information.”
- Reducing the amount in column (e) by a reimbursement. The instructions say “Don’t reduce this amount by any reimbursement you received.”
Related: filing status in the year of divorce, Schedule 2 line 9, Form 1040 line 1b, and Form 1040.
Sources
- Instructions for Form 2441, Child and Dependent Care Expenses (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i2441.pdf
- Form 2441, Child and Dependent Care Expenses (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f2441.pdf
Read from the IRS documents linked above on October 18, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the account provider or the IRS is the right place to confirm anything consequential.