In Belgium, families with young dependents receive tax
reliefs depending on the type of care used. In this paper we
analyze the Federal government policy that allows families using formal
childcare to deduct their expenses out of their taxable income. For families
using parental and informal care, a tax credit is granted
for each child under three years old. We find that tax deduction of
childcare expenses is a progressive tax policy among the users of formal day
care. On the contrary, when considering all families with young dependents
the tax policies for childcare are regressive.