Source: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/i2441--2025.pdf#page=5
Pages 5-5, text extracted with pdftotext (poppler), reading order.

Line 10
Credit Limit Worksheet

Line 18

Complete this worksheet to figure the amount to enter on line 10.
1. Enter the amount from Form 1040, 1040-SR, or
1040-NR, line 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2. Enter the amount from Schedule 3 (Form 1040), line 1
(foreign tax credit) and line 6l (Form 8978, line 14) . .
3. Subtract line 2 from line 1. Also enter this amount on
Form 2441, line 10. But if zero or less, stop; you can’t
take the credit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.
2.

3.

Part III. Dependent Care Benefits
Line 12

Enter the total amount of dependent care benefits you received
in 2025. Amounts you received as an employee should be
shown in box 10 of your Form(s) W-2; however, don’t include
amounts reported in box 10 that exceed your plan's exclusion
and are therefore reported as wages in box 1 of Form(s) W-2. If
you were self-employed or a partner, include amounts you
received under a dependent care assistance program from your
sole proprietorship or partnership.

Line 13

If you had an employer-provided dependent care plan, your
employer may have permitted you to carry forward any unused
amount from 2024 to use during a grace period in 2025, as
described in Notice 2005–42, 2005–23 I.R.B. 1204, available at
IRS.gov/irb/2005–23_IRB#NOT–2005–42. Enter on line 13 the
amount you carried forward and used in 2025 during the grace
period.

Line 14

If you had an employer-provided dependent care plan, enter on
line 14 the total of the following amounts included on line 12.
• Any amount you forfeited. You forfeited an amount if you didn't
receive it because you didn't incur the expense. Don't include
amounts you expect to receive at a future date.
• Any amount you didn't receive but are permitted by your
employer to carry forward and use in the following year.
Example. Under your employer's dependent care plan, you
chose to have your employer set aside $5,000 to cover your
2025 dependent care expenses. The $5,000 is shown in box 10
of your Form W-2. In 2025, you incurred and were reimbursed for
$4,950 of qualified expenses. You would enter $5,000 on line 12
and $50, the amount forfeited, on line 14. You would also enter
$50 on line 14 if, instead of forfeiting the amount, your employer
permitted you to carry the $50 forward to use during the grace
period in 2026.

Line 15

Add the amounts on lines 12 and 13 and subtract from that total
the amount on line 14. Enter the result on line 15.

Line 16

Enter the total of all qualified expenses incurred in 2025 for the
care of your qualifying person(s). It doesn't matter when the
expenses were paid.
Example. You received $2,000 in cash under your
employer's dependent care plan for 2025. The $2,000 is shown
in box 10 of your Form W-2. Only $900 of qualified expenses
were incurred in 2025 for the care of your 5-year-old dependent
child. You would enter $2,000 on line 12 and $900 on line 16.
Instructions for Form 2441 (2025)

If filing jointly, figure your and your spouse's earned income
separately. Enter your earned income on line 18 and your
spouse's earned income on line 19. If your filing status is married
filing separately or you or your spouse was a student or disabled,
see the instructions for line 19, later.
Earned income for figuring the amount of dependent care
benefits you are able to exclude or deduct from your income is
determined in the same way as earned income for figuring the
credit is determined, as described earlier in the instructions for
lines 4 and 5; however, for purposes of lines 18 and 19, earned
income doesn’t include any dependent care benefits shown on
line 12.
You can elect to include your nontaxable combat pay in
earned income when figuring your exclusion or deduction, even if
you elect not to include it in earned income for the EIC or the
credit for child and dependent care expenses. However,
including this income will only give you a larger exclusion or
deduction if your (or your spouse's) other earned income is less
than the amount entered on line 17. To make the election,
include all of your nontaxable combat pay in the amount you
enter on line 18 (line 19 for your spouse if filing jointly). If you are
filing jointly and both you and your spouse received nontaxable
combat pay, you can each make your own election. (In other
words, if one of you makes the election, the other one can also
make it but doesn't have to.) The amount of your nontaxable
combat pay should be shown in box 12 of your Form(s) W-2 with
code Q.

Special Situations

• If you are filing jointly, disregard community property laws in
determining the earned income of an individual.
• If your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in 2025, see
the instructions for lines 4 and 5, earlier.

Line 19

If your filing status is married filing separately, see Married
Persons Filing Separately, earlier. Are you considered unmarried
under that rule?
Yes. Enter your earned income (from line 18) on line 19.
No. Enter your spouse's earned income on line 19. If you
or your spouse was a full-time student or disabled in 2025,
see the instructions for lines 4 and 5.

Line 21

Enter on line 21 the maximum amount that you may exclude for
the year under your dependent care plan. For 2025, the
maximum amount that can be excluded from your income
through a dependent care assistance program is $5,000 ($2,500
if married filing separately). Don't enter more than the maximum
amount allowed under your dependent care plan. For example, if
your dependent care plan only allows a maximum of $4,000 to
be excluded, substitute $4,000 for the $5,000 amount to enter on
line 21.

Line 24

Include your deductible benefits in the total entered on
Schedule C (Form 1040), line 14; Schedule E (Form 1040),
line 19 or line 28; or Schedule F (Form 1040), line 15, whichever
applies.

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