Child Care Subsidy

Applying for the Child Care Subsidy

All applications for the CCS are made through your myGov Account, not through your child care provider.

To apply for the subsidy, please follow the below steps:

 

  1. Go to the myGov website.

  2. Log in to your account. If you don’t yet have one, you can create one.

  3. Once you are logged in, navigate to Centrelink.

  4. Choose the following options from the menu – Payment and Claims > Claims > Make a Claim.

  5. Under the Families section, choose ‘get started’.

  6. Follow the instructions to answer all the questions. You will need to have your salary information handy.

  7. Press submit.

Child Care Subsidy Assessment ​

Centrelink will assess your claim and provide you with an assessment letter outlining your entitlement. The assessment is based on the information you provide so it’s important to ensure this is as accurate as possible.

The assessment will provide you with your subsidy percentage and also how much subsidised care you can access for each child per fortnight. This is based on the number of hours you work (both paid and unpaid work), study, volunteer etc. You can find more information abou recognised activities here.

Once you have received this assessment letter, you will need to give your childcare provider your CRN and you child’s CRN. This will be given to you when you make your application and can be found in your myGov account.

Your childcare provider will then connect your Centrelink account and add your child’s enrolment details. Once this has been done, you will receive a notification from Centrelink to login and approve the enrolment notice.

Child Care Subsidy and Immunisation

In order to receive the CCS, your child must meet the immunisation requirements.

They either need to be up to date with the National Immunisation Program Schedule, be on an immunisation catch up schedule in line with the Australian Immunisation Handbook or have an approved medical exemption. 

If your child is immunised, you don’t need to do anything. This will be checked automatically through Medicare when you apply.

If your child misses an immunisation, you have a grace period of 63 days before you will stop receiving the subsidy. 

For those children who were vaccinated overseas, speak with your vaccination provider in Australia.

The Preschool Exemption Program

The activity test will determine how many hours of subsidised care you are eligible to receive for your child.

If you are eligible for zero or 24 hours, you may also be able to access the preschool exemption program. This may give you access to 36 hours of subsidised care each fortnight for a preschool-aged child to attend a preschool program within a centre-based child care service.

When does the preschool exemption apply?

In order to access this exemption, you must first meet the CCS eligibility requirements, and:

  • Have a preschool-aged child, i.e. a child in the year before their first year of primary school. The preschool exemption only applies to children in this age bracket.

  • Your preschool-aged child attends an early educational program that is delivered by a qualified early childhood teacher.

  • Your regular CCS subsidised care entitlement is less than 36 hours per fortnight.

How to apply for the preschool exemption

You can apply for the preschool exemption by updating your child’s expected school start date. You can do this by following the below steps:

  1. Go to the myGov website.

  2. Log in to your account.

  3. Once you are logged in, navigate to Centrelink.

  4. Click on ‘Child Care Subsidy’.

  5. Click on ‘View/Update Child Education Details’.

  6. You will then be taken to the ‘Select a Child’ screen. Click ‘Action’ for the relevant child.

  7. You will then be taken to the ‘Schooling Details’ screen. Your child’s education level should be set to ‘Has not started studies’.

  8. Enter your child’s estimated primary school start date in the question box, ‘When is <child’s name> expected to start primary school?’

What if my school start date changes?

Your preschool exemption will no longer apply if you choose to delay your child’s primary school start date for a further year. You should update your child’s expected school start date with Centrelink as soon as you’re aware of change.

FAQ's

How many absent days can you have for the CCS?

Each financial year, you are entitled to 42 allowable absences per child. You do not need to provide documentation for these absences and they can be used for illness, holidays or any other reason.

Any days above and beyond the 42 allowable absences will not incur CCS unless you provide a Doctor’s certificate or other appropriate documentation.

Why has my CCS amount changed?

If you find that your CCS hours are different each alternate week, this could be due to the hours of care you are eligible for vs the hours of care that you use.

For example, if your CCS entitlement is 100 hours of subsidised care per fortnight and your child attends for 110 hours, your fees for the second week of the fortnight will be higher to reflect this. 

The other reason your CCS amount may change is because a change in your income. Each year you need to update your income estimate and your CCS may change as a result of this.

Why is the start date on my Centrelink account different to the actual start date?

The start date on your Centrelink account is the date your child’s enrolment details were sent to Centrelink. This may be before or after your child started at the child care provider. 

Is there an annual cap on the Child Care Subsidy?

For families earning $190,015 or less, there is no annual cap. If your combined family income is between $190,015 and $354,305, you you will have an annual cap of $10,655 per child, per financial year.

You can refer to your letter of assessment for whether the annual cap applies to you or not.