Reviewed by: MyTaxRebate Team | Last updated: 2026-02-26 | Checked against Revenue TDM Part 15-01-41.
Quick Answer
Only one person can claim the Single Person Child Carer Credit for a qualifying child in any given tax year. The primary claimant is the person with whom the child lives for the whole of the tax year as their principal carer. Where the primary claimant cannot fully use the credit — because their income falls below the threshold at which it becomes valuable — they may relinquish the credit to a secondary claimant, typically the other parent of the child, using the SPCC1 process. The secondary claimant route is not automatic and must be properly structured.
What this page covers
- How primary and secondary claimant roles work
- Why only one person can claim SPCCC for a given child per tax year
- The principal residence rule that determines who the primary claimant is
- How the relinquishment route enables a secondary claimant to receive the credit
- What determines your claimant status
- How Revenue identifies the principal carer from school, GP, and address records
- What happens when both parents claim the same year simultaneously
- Why the level of parental involvement alone does not determine claimant status
- Evidence that establishes your claimant position
- Year-specific records that directly support the principal-carer position
- How court orders and parenting plans factor into disputed claimant cases
- What documentation is specifically needed for the relinquishment route
SPCCC Key Facts
- Only one person can claim SPCCC for a qualifying child in any given tax year.
- The primary claimant is the person with whom the child resides as their principal carer for the full year.
- A secondary claimant can only receive the credit if the primary claimant formally relinquishes it through the SPCC1 process.
- Both primary and secondary claimants must independently meet all personal SPCCC qualifying conditions.
- The rate-band extension element (worth up to approximately €800) is most valuable to claimants who pay higher-rate tax.
- Where two parents both submit claims for the same child in the same year, Revenue refuses both and initiates a determination process.
Key Takeaways
- Only one person can claim SPCCC for a qualifying child in any given tax year.
- Principal residence — not level of parental involvement — determines who is the primary claimant.
- The secondary claimant route requires formal relinquishment by the primary claimant through the SPCC1 process.
What Makes Someone the Primary Claimant
Under Revenue rules, the primary SPCCC claimant is the qualifying individual with whom the qualifying child resides for the whole of the tax year. To be a qualifying individual, you must be single, widowed, or a surviving civil partner, or be separated, divorced, or have had a civil partnership dissolved. You must not be cohabiting as a couple for any part of the year. The full cohabitation rule and how it applies in practice is covered in our guide to SPCCC and cohabiting couples.
The key word in the primary claimant definition is "resides." This means the child must actually live with you as their primary home. A parent who sees the child regularly but whose home is not the child's principal place of residence is not the primary claimant for SPCCC purposes, regardless of the level of involvement in the child's life. This distinction is at the root of many claimant disputes.
The primary claimant can claim the full SPCCC automatically, without any consent or action from the other parent. Their claim is based purely on their own circumstances and the child's residential facts.
The Secondary Claimant Route
A secondary claimant can only receive the SPCCC where the primary claimant formally relinquishes their entitlement to it. This happens through the SPCC1 process, where the primary claimant effectively transfers the credit to another qualifying individual, typically the other parent of the child. Our dedicated SPCCC relinquishment and SPCC1 guide covers the process, timing rules, and common errors in full detail.
The secondary claimant must themselves meet the individual qualifying conditions: they must be single, widowed, separated, or in a dissolved civil partnership, and must not be cohabiting. Being the biological parent of the child is not in itself sufficient — the secondary claimant must satisfy the personal status conditions independently.
It is important to understand that a secondary claimant cannot claim the credit at the same time as the primary claimant. Only one claim can be active for a given child in a given year. Where the primary claimant has relinquished and the secondary claimant is active, the primary claimant's entitlement has been formally set aside for that year.
How Claimant Role Affects Your Tax Position
The SPCCC is worth up to €1,900 as a tax credit. In addition, the credit comes with a rate-band extension that can widen the standard rate tax band, which is potentially worth up to an additional €800 depending on your income level. The total combined benefit can reach approximately €2,700, but the rate-band element only produces value when the claimant's income is above the point at which higher-rate tax applies.
This is exactly why the relinquishment route exists. A primary claimant who earns a modest income may receive little or no benefit from the rate-band extension component because their income does not reach the higher rate threshold. If the secondary claimant has a higher income, they could benefit more from the combined credit and rate-band extension. The relinquishment route allows the family unit to maximise the overall tax benefit, within the rules.
Evidence That Supports Each Claimant Position
For the primary claimant, the most relevant evidence is anything that establishes the child's principal residence with you during the tax year. School enrolment showing your address as the home address, GP registration, utility bills, and public service records linking the child to your household are all valuable. This evidence should ideally be year-specific and consistent across record types. The SPCCC evidence checklist provides a full breakdown of each document category and how to organise them for your specific claim.
For a secondary claimant using the relinquishment route, the required documentation relates to the SPCC1 process itself. The primary claimant must complete the relevant form and process confirming their relinquishment, and the secondary claimant must then make their own individual claim. Both parties need to meet the personal eligibility conditions in the year the credit is claimed.
In a disputed situation where both parties believe they are the primary claimant, the evidence of actual day-to-day principal residence determines the outcome. Court orders, school records, GP registrations, and social welfare records are all relevant. Revenue will review the competing claims and make a determination based on the facts.
Disputes and Concurrent Claims
The most problematic scenario in SPCCC claimant cases is where both parents submit claims for the same child in the same year. Revenue's response in this situation is typically to refuse both claims initially and request evidence from each party to determine who the correct claimant is. This can delay both claims significantly.
If you are aware that the other parent of the qualifying child may also be planning to claim, it is worth addressing the potential dispute proactively by preparing strong, year-specific evidence of the child's primary residence with you before submitting. A well-evidenced claim from the correct claimant typically resolves the dispute faster than a contested review process.
Claimant-role scenarios
Straightforward primary claim with clear residence evidence
A single mother had been the sole residential carer for her two children since a separation three years earlier. School enrolment records, GP registrations, and a Revenue address record all pointed consistently to her home as the children's primary residence. Her SPCCC claim for all three years was accepted without any information request and the full credit applied for each year.
Secondary claim after valid relinquishment
A separated father with a high income and the primary residential carer status had been unable to fully benefit from the SPCCC rate-band extension because of how his income was structured. After taking advice, his former partner — who had a higher income — used the SPCC1 relinquishment route. Both parties met the individual eligibility conditions, the process was completed correctly, and the credit and rate-band benefit were claimed effectively by the secondary claimant in subsequent years.
Disputed claim where both parents submitted
Two parents of the same child both submitted SPCCC claims for the same tax year. Revenue refused both initially and issued information requests. The parent who had been the day-to-day residential carer throughout the year provided school enrolment records, a GP letter, and a family law order confirming primary residence. That claim was accepted; the other was formally refused.
Common mistakes to avoid
Assuming involvement equals claimant status. Being an active, committed parent does not make you the primary SPCCC claimant. The credit follows the child's principal place of residence, not the level of parental engagement. A parent who sees their child regularly but whose home is not the child's primary residence is not the correct claimant, regardless of how involved they are in the child's life.
Attempting to split the credit between two parents. The SPCCC cannot be divided. Only one person can claim it for a given child in a given year. Attempting to share the credit or claim it simultaneously from two different tax records is not possible under Revenue rules and will result in both claims being refused pending a claimant determination.
Using the relinquishment route without confirming both parties qualify. The secondary claimant in a relinquishment scenario must independently meet all the personal qualifying conditions — including not being cohabiting. If the secondary claimant does not meet these conditions, the credit cannot be transferred to them even if the primary claimant formally relinquishes it.
When this may not apply
- Claimant was cohabiting as a couple during the year. Cohabitation at any point in the tax year disqualifies the individual from being either the primary or secondary SPCCC claimant for that year, regardless of the child's actual residence pattern.
- Child did not reside with the claimant as their principal home. The principal-residence rule is strict. A parent whose home is not the child's primary registered address cannot claim as the primary claimant, regardless of their level of involvement in the child's care.
- Relinquishment conditions not met by both parties. The secondary claimant route requires the primary claimant to formally relinquish and the secondary claimant to independently qualify. If either condition fails, the credit cannot be accessed via this route.
Related SPCCC guides
More SPCCC guides
Do not leave this to chance
If your SPCCC case has any complexity — shared custody, a rejected claim, backdated years, or household changes — the most reliable path is professional handling. We build, submit, and defend claims with a no-refund-no-fee model.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the primary SPCCC claimant where parents share custody equally?
Where care is genuinely equal, the parent whose home is the child's registered primary residence — for school, GP, and official correspondence purposes — is typically treated as the principal carer and therefore the primary claimant. In practice, one address is usually the child's official home, and that is the determining factor.
Can the secondary claimant benefit from the rate-band extension?
Yes. When a primary claimant validly relinquishes the SPCCC, the secondary claimant receives both the €1,900 credit and the rate-band extension. The rate-band benefit is income-dependent: it is most valuable to claimants with income above the standard rate threshold.
What is the safest approach in a disputed claimant situation?
Prepare year-specific evidence of the child's primary residence with you before submitting your claim. Evidence that is consistent across school, medical, and address records is the most persuasive. If you know the other parent may also claim, a professionally structured submission with strong evidence is the most reliable way to resolve the dispute in your favour.
Official Revenue Guidance
For authoritative SPCCC rules, refer to Revenue Tax and Duty Manual Part 15-01-41. This is the primary source document that defines all eligibility conditions, the relinquishment process, and the technical rules governing the credit.