Child Care Subsidy (CCS) and Rebate Guide
From 10 July 2023, the Commonwealth Government Child Care Subsidy (CCS) is making high-quality early education and care more affordable for Australian families.
These exciting changes and how they could apply to your circumstances may be tricky to navigate. We are here to help you understand the changes and make the most of what your CCS entitlements could be.
Key changes
- If your family earns less than $80,000 per year, your Child Care Subsidy rates will increase from 85% to 90%.
- If your family earns under $530,000 per year, you’ll now be eligible to receive Child Care Subsidy rates.
- Your Child Care Subsidy rates will decrease 1% for every additional $5,000 earned over $80,000.
- Families with more than one child aged 5 or under can still get a higher rate for their second and younger children.
- First Nations children will be eligible for at least 36 hours of subsidised care per fortnight.
- Families can get more subsidised hours based on their circumstances.
Child Care Subsidy Explained
Check out our easy explainer video to assist in understanding the Child Care Subsidy (CCS). It’ll take you through everything you need to know to get started.
AM I ELIGIBLE?
You may be eligible for the Child Care Subsidy if you meet a number of factors. Check out our video for the full explainer.
How much CCS will I be entitled to?
This will depend on four factors:
- Your total combined family income
- The service type. This can be long day care, or outside school hours care (OSHC)
- The number of children you have in care
- How much ‘work-related’ activity undertaken each fortnight by parents and carers
Not sure what kinds of activity make the cut for the Subsidy? See below.
Government Activity Test
Types of approved activity
Paid work, including leave
Volunteering
Studying (approved course)
Self-employed work
Working for free (in the family business)
Actively job seeking
Time taken to travel between the child care service and your place of work, training, study, or other approved activity will also be included.
| Between 8 and 16 | 36 hours |
| 16 to 48 | 72 hours |
| More than 48 | 100 hours |
Kindergarten Approved Care
Kindergarten aged children are entitled to 36 hours to attend a kindergarten program in an approved long day care service.
No activity test requirements.
how to apply?
You’ll be applying for CCS via your MyGov Account, which is linked to Centrelink. Do this as soon as you know when you might be sending your little one into care so that it’s all set up and ready to go for your child’s first day.
Don’t necessarily wait until you’ve found a centre that you’re happy with. The entire process may take between four and six weeks, and if it’s not set up when you begin care, you may be paying full fees until it’s all complete.
Check out the video to see how to apply for the CCS online. You can then track the progress of your claim online, every step of the way.
Need help setting up a MyGov account?
Read more online at Services Australia.
Flexible Hours
We know that there is no one size fits all option for our families when it comes to early childhood education and care. That is why we give families the freedom to choose which hours best suit their needs.
Designed to reduce out of pocket costs and increase access to subsidised hours, the new flexible model is part of our commitment to providing greater access to quality early childhood education and care.
Read more about flexible hours here.
How To Work Out Your Out-of-Pocket payment
It’s great to know what your child care centre charges for a day, but what you really need to know - for family finance purposes - is what you’ll need to pay out of pocket.
To try calculating your out-of-pocket fee, try our handy subsidy calculator. Simply enter your details and it will bring up an estimate for you!
Want to try and work out your out-of-pocket fee manually? You might like to check out this video for a formula that will help!
Until 9 July 2023 - Here’s how much you can expect to get covered, on average.
*Based on eldest or only child. Families with more than one child may be eligible for a higher subsidy for their second child and younger children.
*The $12.74 hourly cap applied above is a 2022 figure and is subject to change with the Commonwealth Government’s announcement of the 2024 CCS hourly cap changes.
To read more about combined annual income and the annual cap, click here for further information from education.gov.au.
Until 9 July 2023 - Here’s how much you can expect to get covered, on average.
*Based on eldest or only child. Families with more than one child may be eligible for a higher subsidy for their second child and younger children.
*The $12.74 hourly cap applied above is a 2022 figure and is subject to change with the Commonwealth Government’s announcement of the 2024 CCS hourly cap changes.
To read more about combined annual income and the annual cap, click here for further information from education.gov.au.
The Additional Child Care Subsidy and more
Check out the best ways of making the subsidy work for your family; from our Flexible Hours offering to the Additional Child Care Subsidy and Preschool Exemption Program. These are all great ways of making child care more affordable.
Please note that the Additional Child Care Subsidy is a top up payment in addition to the Child Care Subsidy which will provide targeted additional fee assistance to families and children who need extra support.
The Additional Child Care Subsidy has four elements:
- Child wellbeing
- Grandparents
- Temporary financial hardship
- Transition to work.
Child care subsidy made easy!
We’ve included the latest information and valuable resources for you in this free eBook to assist in your CCS journey.
still need help?
Disclaimer
The subsidy you will receive and any applicable cap will depend upon your own personal circumstances and is subject to your combined family income, hours of recognised activity and child care details. Even if you are currently receiving the Child Care Benefit or Child Care Rebate, you will need to update your details through your Centrelink account on MyGov. For more information visit The Department of Education’s website at https://www.dese.gov.au/early-childhood/help-paying-child-care.