For Parents
Nursery fees are expensive. We can help.
Halo lets you pay for childcare before tax — saving your family thousands every year through your employer.
What is it?
What is Halo Pay?
Halo Pay is a workplace benefit that lets you pay for nursery fees before tax. Your employer takes the nursery cost from your salary before income tax and National Insurance are calculated — so you pay less tax and keep more of your money.
Instead of receiving your full salary and then paying nursery fees from what's left, the nursery cost comes out first. That means the taxman only sees your reduced salary — and you save on both income tax and National Insurance.
You don't need to change nurseries. You can use any registered nursery — if they're not already working with Halo, we'll onboard them within a few days.
Your employer sets it up. Halo handles the admin. And your employer pays your nursery directly, on time, every month. All you have to do is choose how much you want to save.
Getting started
How to enrol
Check your employer offers Halo
If your employer is already signed up, you'll receive an invitation by email. If not, you can send them a link — it takes them about 10 minutes to register.
Choose your nursery
Pick any registered nursery. You're not limited to a network — use the one you already trust. If they're new to Halo, we'll onboard them at no cost.
Set your contribution
Decide how much of your salary you'd like to put towards nursery fees each month. Halo automatically checks you won't fall below the National Minimum Wage.
Save automatically every month
That's it. Your employer adjusts your payroll, your employer pays your nursery directly, and you save money every single month without lifting a finger.
Savings calculator
See what you could save
You could save
£3,024/year
This is an indicative estimate and not tax advice. Actual savings depend on your circumstances, employer participation and nursery costs. See how we calculate this.
FAQ
Common questions from parents
No. You can use any registered nursery. If your nursery isn't already on the Halo network, we'll onboard them for free — usually within a few days.
Savings depend on your salary, tax band, and nursery fees. A basic-rate taxpayer paying £1,000/month in fees could save around £3,360 per year. Higher-rate taxpayers save even more.
No. Halo works through the workplace nursery exemption (Halo Pay), which is a separate and often more generous tax relief. You can't use both simultaneously for the same child, but Halo typically offers higher savings.
Your gross salary on paper is reduced, which could affect income-based calculations. However, most employers maintain pension contributions at the original salary level. We recommend checking with your employer and mortgage provider.
Your Halo Pay arrangement ends when your employment ends. You'd simply return to paying nursery fees directly. There are no exit penalties or ongoing commitments.
Yes. You can adjust your contribution amount, typically on a monthly basis. Changes take effect from the following payroll cycle.
There's no set minimum. The maximum is capped to ensure your remaining salary doesn't fall below the National Minimum Wage — Halo checks this automatically.
You can send them to our employer page or share the link directly. Registration takes about 10 minutes and Halo handles all the setup. It costs your employer nothing to set up or run.
Halo is structured under the workplace nursery exemption — Section 318 of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003. An independent tax review has been completed and documentation is available on request.
If you receive government-funded hours, those are deducted before calculating the Halo Pay amount. Halo Pay only covers the portion you'd otherwise pay out of pocket.
Yes. As long as you pay yourself through PAYE, you can use Halo Pay. The workplace nursery exemption applies to anyone on a PAYE payroll, including company directors. Sole traders can’t use it because there’s no employer–employee relationship.
Ready to start saving?
Talk to your employer about Halo, or send them our way — we'll take it from there.