Air Force & Space Force Family Guide: How to Secure Childcare Grants and Base Support
By Sophia Al-Mansoor
On-base Department of the Air Force child development centers (CDCs) run on income-based, sliding-scale fee charts. These facilities maintain high educator ratios and extensive safety accreditation. Demand outstrips capacity at nearly every major installation, creating waitlists that run from six to eighteen months.
To keep parents from paying market-rate commercial fees while waiting, the Department of Defense operates Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood (MCCYN) and MCCYN-PLUS. This program pays childcare fee assistance directly to accredited community providers to match on-base fees. The program bridges the gap between what an airman would pay at a CDC and what commercial centers charge.
| Program / Resource | Scope of Support | Target User & Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| AFAS Child Care for PCS | Up to 20 free care hours per child via licensed FCC homes | Members within 60 days of departing or arriving at a station |
| On-Base CDC Placement | Direct full-day child care priced by total family income tier | Active duty; applications submit via MilitaryChildCare.com |
| MCCYN Fee Assistance | Subsidizes price delta between private daycare and CDC caps | Families waitlisted for base care; processed via Child Care Aware |
| EFMP Respite Services | Specialized care hours for children with diagnosed medical needs | Enrolled EFMP households; ongoing allocation through installation |
Applying requires creating an account on MilitaryChildCare.com months before receiving physical orders. If the system confirms a base facility has zero available slots, users can request an MCCYN subsidy referral code.
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