Child Care Subsidy

The Child Care Subsidy is the main way the Government assists families to pay for the cost of childcare. Here is what you need to know

What is the Child Care Subsidy

The Child Care Subsidy replaced the Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate in 2018. The subsidy is designed to be simpler, to make childcare affordable for more families, and to provide more help to low and middle-income families.

The Child Care Subsidy is only paid for approved care, which is:
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

The Child Care Subsidy is worked out according to your family’s income, the hourly rate cap on the type of approved child care you use, your child’s age, and the hours of activity you and your partner do. You can estimate how much Child Care Subsidy you may get on the Services Australia website.

The Child Care Subsidy is paid directly to the childcare service. The service will then reduce your fees — you just pay the difference between the amount the service charges and the amount paid by the subsidy.

There is also a Child Care Safety Net to provide extra payments for disadvantaged families and children. For more information, visit the Department of Education and Training website.

How much will the Child Care Subsidy pay?

The amount of the subsidy will depend on:

your combined family income (you will need to do a means test)
how many hours per week each parent spends doing activities such as paid work, training, volunteering or looking for work
the type of childcare service (long day care, occasional care, family day care or outside school hours care)

Families earning up to $66,958 will receive a subsidy of 85% of the actual fee charged. Families earning between $66,958 and $351,248 will receive a progressively lower percentage, depending on how much they earn. The hourly fee will be capped depending on the type of service.
For most families (those earning $186,958 or less), there is no longer an annual cap on the amount of subsidy they can receive. There is an increased annual cap for families earning more than that amount.

Am I eligible?

You can receive the Child Care Subsidy for a child if:

the child is 13 or under and not attending secondary school
the child is immunised
you, or your partner, meet the residency requirements
you are responsible for paying the childcare fees

Are there additional payments available?

You may also be eligible for an Additional Child Care Subsidy if you are:

an eligible grandparent getting an income support payment
transitioning from certain income support payments to work
experiencing temporary financial hardship

Read more about the Additional Child Care Subsidy on the Services Australia website.

What are the immunisation requirements for the Child Care Subsidy?

To meet the Government’s requirements and be eligible for child care assistance, all of your children aged under 20 must:

Be up-to-date with the immunisations listed in the Child programs table in the National Immunisation Program, or
Be on a ‘suitable catch-up schedule’ under the Australian Immunisation Handbook, or
Have an approved medical exemption, such as a natural immunity or a history of anaphylaxis after a previous vaccine, which is recorded on the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR)

Broadly speaking, your child needs to be vaccinated to receive the subsidy, however, there is no need to tell the Government when they’re vaccinated. The Government checks the AIR using your child’s Medicare details, and if your youngster was vaccinated overseas, simply provide the evidence of this to your Australian medical practitioner and they’ll update the AIR for you.

In terms of timing, if your child stops meeting the immunisation requirements for some reason, then you have 63 days to start meeting them again before your subsidy stops.

Why do my weekly fees sometimes fluctuate?

If you claim the Child Care Subsidy, your entitlement may fluctuate during the financial year due to the change of individual or family circumstances. This adjustment is determined by Services Australia (Centrelink) and is calculated automatically. If you notice any large changes in your fees, please notify us and we will help provide you with the information you need to discuss your entitlement with Service Australia.

How do I make payments for the child care fees?

Your account is automatically charged every Monday for that week in advance; and a detailed statement will be emailed to your nominated email address on the same day. Our preferred method of payment is direct deposit . Alternatively, you may choose to use the direct debit service supplied by us.