20Payments that may be made from childcare accounts
(1)The only payments which the account-holder may authorise to be made from a childcare account are—
(a)payments in respect of qualifying childcare for the relevant child, and
(b)withdrawals made by the account-holder.
(2)In this section “the relevant child”, in relation to a childcare account, means the child in respect of whom the account is held.
(3)A payment within subsection (1) is referred to in this Act as a permitted payment.
(4)A payment made from a childcare account which—
(a)is not a permitted payment, and
(b)is not made by the account provider to HMRC under this Act,
is referred to in this Act as a prohibited payment.
(5)Permitted payments may be made from a childcare account in an entitlement period whether or not the account-holder has made a valid declaration of eligibility for the entitlement period.
(6)Where—
(a)a payment is made from a childcare account, and
(b)only part of the payment is in respect of qualifying childcare for the relevant child,
so much of the payment as is properly attributable to the costs of qualifying childcare for the relevant child is to be treated as a permitted payment, and the remainder is to be treated as a prohibited payment.
(7)Regulations may make provision for determining, for the purposes of subsection (6), how much of a payment is properly attributable to the costs of qualifying childcare for the relevant child.
(8)For the meaning of “qualifying childcare”, see section 2.