Maximise Your Child Care Subsidy Benefits with Our Calculator
The Child Care Subsidy (CCS) is a federal government payment designed to help reduce child care fees for eligible families. This financial assistance is means-tested and based on your family’s income, circumstances, and activity levels. To qualify for CCS, you must be an Australian citizen or hold an eligible visa.
Key Components of the Child Care Subsidy:
1. Subsidy Percentage – The percentage of child care costs covered by Services Australia (e.g., up to 85%).
2. Approved Hours Per Fortnight – The total number of subsidised care hours allocated (e.g., 100 hours per fortnight).
The actual CCS amount depends on your family’s entitlement and the child care centre’s fees. Once approved, the government pays the subsidy directly to the centre, and families are billed for the remaining gap payment.
Want to estimate your potential CCS benefits? Try our Child Care Subsidy Calculator to quickly determine your eligibility and better plan your child care costs.
What is Free Kindy?
Looking for free early learning opportunities? Queensland’s Free Kindy program offers eligible children 15 hours per week of quality education in the year before Prep. Run by qualified educators, it supports literacy, numeracy, and social development.
Children must be four by 30 June to qualify. While the program is free, extra hours may attract fees, often reduced with the Child Care Subsidy.
Find out more at the Queensland Government Early Childhood site.
The Free Kindy program offers 15 hours per week of early childhood education, over 40 weeks per year, for eligible Queensland children attending a government-approved kindergarten program.
Children who turn four by 30 June in the year before they start school are eligible for the Free Kindy program.
The Free Kindy program commenced on 1 January 2024.
The program is available in both sessional kindergartens and long day care services. Sessional kindergartens operate during school hours each term, while long day care services may offer extended hours.
The program provides 15 hours of free kindergarten per week. Additional care outside these hours may incur costs, which could potentially be offset by the Child Care Subsidy.
You can search for approved kindergarten program providers on the Queensland Government’s Early Childhood Education and Care website.
Contact your local approved kindergarten program provider to discuss enrolment procedures and confirm the start date of your child’s program.
