Several women’s groups and Members of Knesset celebrated an unprecedented court ruling Sunday that allowed a mother from Tel Aviv to report the cost of daycare for her two children as a business expenditure for tax purposes. Attorney Vered Pri and head of the Naamat women’s group Attorney Talia Livni expressed hope that the ruling would encourage more mothers of young children to work out of the home. The ruling would make it financially worthwhile for mothers of young children to put their children in daycare, the two said.
Rina Bar-Tal, head of the Women’s Lobby, called on other working mothers to request a tax return for the cost of daycare for their children. A study conducted on behalf of the Women’s Lobby showed that tens of thousands of women would work out of the home if they were reimbursed for daycare costs, she said, and fewer women would collect unemployment benefits.