Child Care Subsidy

Government Assistance to help you with the cost of child care.

To get Child Care Subsidy (CCS) you must:

care for a child 13 or younger who’s not attending secondary school, unless
an exemption applies
use an approved child care service
be responsible for paying the child care fees
meet residency and immunisation requirements.

Read the full conditions under who can get it here

Who can get it

You need to meet some requirements to get Child Care Subsidy.

The government pays this subsidy directly to your child care provider to reduce the fees you pay.
You may be eligible if you or your partner meet all of the following:
care for your child at least 2 nights per fortnight, or have 14% care
are liable for fees for care provided at an approved child care service
meet the residence rules.

Your child must also meet both of these:

immunisation requirements
not be attending secondary school unless an exemption applies.
If your child attends secondary school, you may still be eligible if they need supervision. They must be either:
13 or under
14 to 18 with disability.

In these circumstances, you must provide evidence why your child can’t be unsupervised. This may include evidence of your child’s disability. You also need to confirm an adult cannot care for your child during this time.

Each person that’s liable to pay child care fees will need to apply for this subsidy and meet these criteria.

Read more about how to maintain your eligibility for Child Care Subsidy (CCS) when your child doesn’t use child care.

Extra support

Some families can get Additional Child Care Subsidy. The government pays it on top of Child Care Subsidy to provide extra support with child care fees.

There are 3 different types of Additional Child Care Subsidy that you can apply for. You can apply if you’re either:

a grandparent
transitioning to work
experiencing temporary financial hardship.

Approved child care

These are services that have Australian Government approval to get Child Care Subsidy on your behalf to reduce your fees. Approved child care includes:

Centre Based Day Care, including long day care and occasional care
Family Day Care
Outside School Hours Care, including before, after and vacation care
In Home Care.

How much you can get

The amount of Child Care Subsidy you can get depends on your circumstances.

Use our Payment and Service Finder to estimate how much Child Care Subsidy (CCS) you may get.

To work out how much CCS you’re eligible for we’ll look at all of the following:

your family’s income
the hourly rate cap based on the type of approved child care you use and your child’s age
the hours of activity you and your partner do
the number of children in your care.

The amount of subsidised child care you can access per fortnight applies to each child.

If you have a CCS overpayment, we may use some of your CCS each fortnight to pay this back. The easiest way to repay money is by using the Money you owe service. This is available in either your Centrelink online account through myGov or your Express Plus Centrelink mobile app. Read more about the steps you can take if you’re ready to start repaying the money you owe.

Offering fee discounts for child care educators and teachers

If you work for a child care service, you may be eligible for a discount if your child also attends the same service.

This doesn’t apply if you’re employed by a Family Day Care or In Home Care service.

You should talk to your child care service to find out if you’re eligible.
Find out more information about the discount offer on the Department of Education website.

Gap fee payments

From 1 July 2023, there are changes to the way gap fee payments are made. This is also known as the out-of-pocket cost. Gap fee payments must be paid electronically. Read more on the Department of Education website.