Record each child on JPA.
The ‘certificate verified box’ must state ‘yes’.
Primary School Aged Childcare Overseas (PSACO) Allowance
Get funding for the cost of up to 20 hours of before and after school childcare for your 4–11-year-old (4–16-year-old children if in receipt of certain disability benefits), in locations where the Wraparound Childcare (WAC) Allowance is not available.
Am I eligible?
The Primary School Aged Childcare Overseas (PSACO) Allowance is available to Regular and FTRS (all commitment types) Service personnel who are assigned to an overseas location where local rules and regulations prevent the WAC scheme being available.
Disabled children who are in receipt of Disability living allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Armed Forces Independence Payment or are certified blind or severely sight impaired, may be able to claim double the amount of funding.
More details can be found in the PSACO eligibility criteria document.
What is this for?
The PSACO Allowance is the final phase of the WAC scheme and provides funding for before and after school childcare in overseas locations where due to local rules or regulations, it is not possible for WAC eligibility criteria to be met.
What do I get?
You will be able to claim up to 20 hours of PSACO funding per week, per child, for 39 weeks of the year, during term time. On average you could save around £3,400 per child, per year.
To find out how much you will be able to claim, use the PSACO Benefits Calculator at the bottom of this page. The rate is based on the average rate for England adjusted to add the Local Overseas Allowance (LOA) formula for each location.
Which childcare providers can I use?
The childcare provider may be run by private companies, nurseries, schools, sports and youth clubs, voluntary organisations such as charities, or may be a childminder or nanny. The scheme cannot be used for informal childcare, such as grandparents, friends and babysitters.
Providers must be registered, regulated and inspected by host nation authorities.
How do Service families claim the PSACO Allowance?
To benefit from the scheme, you must complete the following steps in sequential order.
1
Record on JPA
2
Check if you meet the eligibility criteria
Check if you meet the PSACO eligibility criteria.
3
Register each child
Register each child by completing the PSACO registration form available from your Unit HR.
Detailed step-by-step guidance is available from you Unit HR.
Wait until you receive eligibility confirmation from your Unit HR before submitting a claim. PSACO funding can only be claimed for childcare used from the date shown on the PSACO registration confirmation email.
4
Claim
Claim up to 20 hours per week, per child during term time (39 weeks per year).
On receipt of an invoice from your childcare provider, pay your provider directly.
Complete the PSACO Allowance claims calculator.
Complete a PSACO Allowance claim in iExpenses following the step-by-step claims guide.
For more information
For more information about the PSACO Allowance in general read:
PSACO Allowance Frequently Asked Questions
PSACO Allowance grossing-up document.
PSACO Allowance how to claim flow chart.
PSACO DIN
Still have a question? Contact the WAC team: PEOPLE-AFFS-WAC-FRO-mailbox@mod.gov.uk
Page last updated: 27 November 2025