Child Care Subsidy
The Child Care Subsidy is Government assistance to help you with the cost of child care.
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To get Child Care Subsidy (CCS) you must:
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care for a child 13 or younger who’s not attending secondary school, unless an exemption applies
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use an approved child care service
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be responsible for paying the child care fees
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meet residency and immunisation requirements.
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You can apply for the Child Care Subsidy through your myGov account or Centrelink app. Select make a claim, under the Families section, then apply for family assistance payments then follow the prompts to complete your claim. Claims can take a few weeks to be processed so this will be one of your first steps for enrolling in a child care service.
Are you eligible for CCS?
Visit
https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/child-care-subsidy
to find out more
3 Day Guarantee – Early Education
The Australian Government is replacing the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) Activity Test from January 2026 to guarantee at least 3 days of subsidised early childhood education and care (ECEC) each week for children who need it.
How will this initiative work?
From January 2026, all families will be eligible for at least 72 hours of subsidised ECEC per fortnight (3 days per week), regardless of their activity levels.
Families can still get 100 hours of subsidised ECEC per fortnight if they meet activity requirements or have a valid exemption.
Families caring for a First Nations child will be eligible for 100 hours of subsidised ECEC per fortnight.
Why is this important?
The 3 Day Guarantee will support universal access to ECEC and help ensure more children are school-ready. It will also provide targeted cost-of-living relief to families.
The Productivity Commission’s final report, A path to universal early childhood education and care (released September 2024), was clear that the children and families most likely to benefit from ECEC are the least likely to attend.
Who will benefit?
The 3 Day Guarantee will benefit all families through certainty around eligibility for subsidised ECEC.
In its first full financial year the 3 Day Guarantee will benefit around 66,700 families, and more than 100,000 families will be eligible for additional hours of subsidised care.
Families earning over $533,280 in 2024-25 are not eligible for subsidised care – consistent with current settings.
3 Day Guarantee – Early Education
The Australian Government is replacing the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) Activity Test from January 2026 to guarantee at least 3 days of subsidised early childhood education and care (ECEC) each week for children who need it.
How will this initiative work?
From January 2026, all families will be eligible for at least 72 hours of subsidised ECEC per fortnight (3 days per week), regardless of their activity levels.
Families can still get 100 hours of subsidised ECEC per fortnight if they meet activity requirements or have a valid exemption.
Families caring for a First Nations child will be eligible for 100 hours of subsidised ECEC per fortnight.
Why is this important?
The 3 Day Guarantee will support universal access to ECEC and help ensure more children are school-ready. It will also provide targeted cost-of-living relief to families.
The Productivity Commission’s final report, A path to universal early childhood education and care (released September 2024), was clear that the children and families most likely to benefit from ECEC are the least likely to attend.
Who will benefit?
The 3 Day Guarantee will benefit all families through certainty around eligibility for subsidised ECEC.
In its first full financial year the 3 Day Guarantee will benefit around 66,700 families, and more than 100,000 families will be eligible for additional hours of subsidised care.
Families earning over $533,280 in 2024-25 are not eligible for subsidised care – consistent with current settings.