How to Apply for Child Care Subsidy for Approved Child Care in Australia

Who can get Child Care Subsidy?

Child Care Subsidy is the Australian Government's main assistance with the cost of approved child care. Services Australia administers family claims, enrolments and payments, while approved child care providers receive CCS on behalf of families and apply it as a reduction to eligible fees.

To qualify, you or your partner must generally care for the child at least 2 nights per fortnight or have at least 14% care, be responsible for the child care fees and meet the residence rules. The child must meet the immunisation requirements and generally must not be attending secondary school unless an exemption applies.

Approved care includes Centre Based Day Care, Family Day Care, Outside School Hours Care and In Home Care. In Home Care has additional eligibility requirements.

What residence rules apply?

On the day you claim, you or your partner must generally be living in Australia and have Australian citizenship, a permanent visa, a Special Category visa or certain eligible temporary visas, including specified partner provisional or temporary protection visa types.

Services Australia also identifies additional circumstances that may satisfy the residence rules, including certain subclass 403 visa holders participating in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme family accompaniment initiative, some overseas students receiving Australian Government financial assistance, hardship and special circumstances.

What immunisation rules must your child meet?

A child must meet the immunisation requirements for CCS. For a person younger than 20, this can mean being up to date under the applicable age-appropriate vaccination schedule, being on an approved catch-up schedule, or having a valid medical contraindication or natural immunity recorded on the Australian Immunisation Register.

During a claim, Services Australia normally asks for the child's Medicare card number and Individual Reference Number so it can check the Australian Immunisation Register. If the child is not eligible for a Medicare card, you should state this in the claim.

If a child who is already receiving CCS stops meeting the immunisation requirements, Services Australia provides 63 days to start meeting them again. If this does not happen, CCS stops and a new claim is required once the child's immunisation status is up to date.

How do you claim CCS online?

The main application route is through your Centrelink online account linked to myGov. From Centrelink, select Make a claim or view claim status, choose Make a claim, go to Families and start the family assistance claim. The online process asks questions about your family, income and circumstances and identifies the payments you may be able to claim.

Centrelink tells you which supporting documents are required for your individual claim. Required documents must be provided before the online claim can be submitted. Depending on your circumstances, information may include identity, financial, relationship, residence and other supporting evidence. Supplementary documents requested as part of the claim can generally be supplied within 14 days after submission.

If you cannot claim online, Services Australia says you can claim by calling the Centrelink Families line; you do not need to attend a service centre merely to make the claim.

Can Child Care Subsidy be backdated?

Yes, but the backdating period is limited. A CCS claim can be backdated to the first Monday of a CCS fortnight, no more than 28 days before the date you submit the claim.

Services Australia recommends claiming before your child starts care. Waiting can mean paying full fees while the claim is being assessed, and care outside the permitted backdating period cannot simply be recovered by submitting the claim later.

How do you add another child to Child Care Subsidy?

If you already receive CCS for another child, you may be able to use the Add child service in your Centrelink online account. This online shortcut is available when you receive CCS for at least one other child and receive Family Tax Benefit for the child being added.

The Add child service cannot be used if you already receive CCS for that child, already have a current claim for the child, or receive Additional Child Care Subsidy. If the option is not available, Services Australia directs you to start a new claim.

You must confirm your child's child care enrolment

Approval of the claim alone is not enough for payment. CCS can only be paid after the claim is approved and the child's enrolment details are confirmed.

Your child care service submits the enrolment details to Services Australia. You must compare those details with your Complying Written Arrangement (CWA), which is your agreement with the service and includes information such as care sessions and fees. The person claiming CCS must be the same person who has the CWA with the service.

If the enrolment is correct, confirm it through Centrelink in myGov. If the information or fees do not match the CWA, do not simply accept incorrect details. Speak with the service and ask it to correct and resubmit the enrolment, then review the new information.

What details does your child care provider need?

When enrolling a child with an approved service, the service needs information that allows it to submit the CCS enrolment. Services Australia specifies your Customer Reference Number (CRN) and date of birth and your child's CRN and date of birth.

If your child has not previously been included in a Centrelink family payment or service, they may not yet have a CRN. Services Australia can create one as part of the relevant process.

How many subsidised hours can you get in 2026?

From 5 January 2026, the previous CCS activity test was replaced by the 3 Day Guarantee. Every CCS-eligible family can receive at least 72 hours of subsidised child care per fortnight for each child, regardless of activity level.

Families can receive 100 hours per fortnight for a child in specified circumstances, including where the child is Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, where the relevant recognised participation exceeds 48 hours per fortnight, where an exemption or exceptional circumstances applies, or for certain Additional Child Care Subsidy recipients.

The 3 Day Guarantee concerns subsidised hours. It does not guarantee that a child care provider has a place available, and families may still need to pay a gap fee.

Your child must start attending care

Your child must physically attend child care at least once within the first 26 weeks after CCS starts. Services Australia warns that CCS may stop if the child does not attend during this period, and you may need to make a new claim to receive CCS again.

After CCS starts, continue checking your Centrelink child care information and keep relevant family and child care circumstances current. You can view or update child care details and payments, subsidised hours, attendance records and other CCS information through your Centrelink online account.

What happens after you submit the claim?

After an online claim is submitted, Centrelink provides a receipt with the claim ID and an estimated completion date. There is no single fixed national processing period published for every CCS claim because assessment depends on the individual claim and any information still required.

You can track the claim through Centrelink online or the Express Plus Centrelink app. Services Australia sends the outcome to your myGov Inbox if you receive electronic letters, or by post otherwise.

If you are also preparing for time away from work after a new child, the separate Parental Leave Pay claim covers a different payment. Families looking at ongoing income support can also check the separate Parenting Payment procedure.

Common CCS claim mistakes to avoid

• Waiting too long to claim and assuming all earlier child care fees can be backdated.
• Using a service that is not approved for CCS.
• Submitting the claim but failing to confirm the child's enrolment afterward.
• Confirming enrolment information that does not match the CWA or the fees agreed with the service.
• Having a different person enter the CWA from the person who claims CCS.
• Failing to provide supporting documents identified as required in the Centrelink claim.
• Not ensuring the child attends at least once during the first 26 weeks after CCS starts.
• Failing to keep residence, family or child care information current after approval.