Quick check on childcare and CCS application for families aged 1-3 in Australia

Let’s go in this order first

Searching for a position and applying for CCS must start at the same time, rather than waiting one after another.

Use StartingBlocks to search for approved services near your home and work location, and waitlist 3-5 services.
Prepare the Centrelink Customer Reference Number (CRN) and date of birth of the parent and child.
Submit a Child Care Subsidy claim via myGov → Centrelink, don't wait until your first attendance.
After getting the service offer, confirm whether sessions, fees, notice period, bond, meals and supplies are included.
The Complying Written Arrangement (CWA) is completed by the same CCS claimant and service.
service submits enrollment to Centrelink; parents return to myGov to check and confirm.
After the first statement arrives, check attendance, session hours, CCS reduction and gap fee.

CCS claim approved does not mean that deductions have started. Usually the service is also required to submit enrolment, and the parents confirm the details.

3 Day Guarantee What exactly does it guarantee?

From January 5, 2026, all families who meet basic CCS eligibility will receive at least 72 hours of subsidized care/fortnight per child, usually referred to as 3 days per week.

100 hours/fortnight may be earned in the following situations:

Both parents (if married) have more than 48 hours of recognized participation each fortnight;
There are approved exemptions or exceptional circumstances;
caring for an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child;
Obtain part of the Additional Child Care Subsidy.

THREE THINGS IT DOES NOT GUARANTEE

There is no guarantee that the center you select will have a location;
There is no guarantee that 72 hours is equivalent to three complete sessions arranged by the center;
This does not mean childcare is free, families will usually still have to pay a gap fee.

Households that have already received CCS do not need to apply separately for 72 hours; households that have never claimed still need to complete a CCS claim first.

Official entry point: 3 Day Guarantee

Check CCS basic qualifications first

Generally, the following conditions need to be met at the same time:

You or your partner care for the children for at least 2 nights every fortnight, or have at least 14% of the care;
You are responsible for the cost of approved child care services;
The applicant meets the residence rules;
The child meets immunization requirements;
The child is normally 13 years of age or under and not in secondary school, unless an exemption applies.

Approved service is critical: Family and friend care, services not approved by the government for CCS, or private nanny arrangements will not automatically qualify for CCS just because you meet the income requirements.

When it comes to shared care, temporary visa, long-term non-attendance of children, or separate payment by different parents, do not apply other people’s results and let Services Australia evaluate directly based on family information.

Official entry point: Who can get CCS

Use StartingBlocks to find approved service

StartingBlocks is a query and comparison portal for ECEC services provided by the government. After entering suburb or postcode, you can view:

service type, address, opening hours and contact information;
Published fees, vacancies and inclusions;
National Quality Standard rating;
most recent regulator visit;
provider/service conditions and public enforcement actions;
side-by-side comparison of multiple services;
CCS calculator for estimating out-of-pocket cost.

Practical search method

Search once for your home address, work location and commuting route first, don’t just search for your doorstep;
Apply for multiple applications at the same time and ask for the current vacancy directly instead of just submitting the form and waiting;
When there is no space for centre-based day care, also check approved Family Day Care;
After searching for the service, confirm the real-time vacancy with the other party. The vacancy on the web page may not be an immediate commitment.

Official Portal: StartingBlocks Find Child Care

Ask these ten things before waitinglisting

The earliest start date, and which days are needed?
Will the waitlist fee, enrollment fee, and bond be refunded?
How many hours are the sessions per day? How much does it cost to pick up children late?
Does the daily fee include meals, nappies, sunscreen and activities?
Are vacation, sick leave and center closure still charged?
How many weeks of notice is required for changes or withdrawals?

Is the CCS approval for [ ] service currently valid?

What are the most recent National Quality Standard ratings and regulator visits?
How to arrange educator turnover, room transition and orientation?
How are children’s allergies, medications, sleep and speech support recorded?

Don’t just compare daily fees. Session length, hourly rate cap, inclusions, absence policy, and commuting costs all change actual spend.

CCS is not daily fee × percentage

When Services Australia calculates CCS, it takes into account:

CCS percentage corresponding to family income;
The hourly rate cap corresponding to the approved care type and the child's age;
Hourly fee actually charged for service;
subsidized hours;
Number and ages of qualifying children in the household.

Your CCS percentage will be applied to the lower of the service hourly fee or the government hourly rate cap. If the center charge exceeds the rate cap, the excess will not continue to be subsidized according to your CCS percentage.

Simple check method

Use daily fee ÷ session hours to calculate service hourly fee;
Compare with the rate cap of the corresponding care type;
Combined with StartingBlocks calculator to estimate gap fee;
The final amount is subject to Centrelink assessment and service statement.

Official entry point: How much CCS you can get

2026-27 rate cap and income threshold

For below-school-age children, the hourly rate caps listed on the official page on July 6, 2026 are:

Centre Based Day Care: $15.19/hour;
Family Day Care: $13.30/hour;
Outside School Hours Care: $15.19/hour;
In Home Care: $41.31/hour per family.

2026-27 standard CCS income table:

Family income $0-$88,520: up to 90%;
Above $88,520, below $538,520: percentage decreases with income;
$538,520 or more: 0%.

The government usually first withholds 5% of CCS entitlement every fortnight, and then balances the actual adjusted taxable income after the end of the financial year. An underestimation of income may result in debt, and family income should be updated in a timely manner.

Thresholds and rate caps may change annually. The numbers on this page are verified as of July 10, 2026 AEST. Please return to the official page before applying.

Official entry point: Your income can affect CCS

When to submit a CCS claim

CCS claims can only be backdated up to 28 days before the submission date, corresponding to the first Monday of CCS fortnight. Don’t wait until your child has been in school for a few weeks before applying.

Online Path

myGov → Centrelink;
Payments and claims → Claims → Make a claim;
Families → Get started;
Apply for Family Assistance Payments;
Select Child Care Subsidy and complete family, income and supporting tasks.

After claim start, the child needs to attend at least once within 26 weeks. If there is no actual attendance for a long time, CCS eligibility may stop and you will need to claim again later.

After submission, save the Claim ID and check the supplement requirements and results in myGov Inbox. Don’t just wait for the service notification.

Official entry point: How to claim CCS

Both parents and children must have CRN

When a service submits enrolment, it usually requires:

CRN and date of birth of CCS claimant;
The child's CRN and date of birth.

If your child is already linked to Family Tax Benefit, Parental Leave Pay or CCS, there will usually be a CRN, which can be found in Centrelink online account → My Family → Family Assistance.

If you do not have a CRN, you can confirm your identity and create a record through myGov, or bring your photo ID to a service center. When a child has never had Centrelink payment/service, a CRN will be established when a CCS claim is completed and approved.

Most common error: The service enrollment uses one parent's information, but the CCS claim and CWA are from another parent. First determine who the claimant is and then keep all records consistent.

Official entry point: Details to give your child care service

CWA and enrollment must match

A Complying Written Arrangement (CWA) is a written agreement between parents and child care services regarding sessions and fees.

The person signing the CWA with the service should be the same CCS claimant;
The care days, session times and fees in CWA must be consistent with the actual offer;
After service submits enrollment details to Centrelink, parents need to confirm online;
Pending confirmation will not be processed and CCS will not be deducted normally.

Confirm path

myGov → Centrelink → My family → Child care → Enrolments;
Find Pending Confirmation;
View service, care type, fees and arrangement;
Confirm if correct; if incorrect, please contact service to modify and resubmit.

Official entry point: Confirm enrolment

What should be checked in the first statement?

child attendance and absence dates are correct;
booked session hours are consistent with CWA;
daily/session fee is consistent with offer;
CCS reduction is shown;
gap fee and other fees are listed separately;
The claimant and child CRN used by the service are correct;
No duplicate enrolment or error session report.

Gap fees generally need to be paid by the household, usually via electronic payment. CCS pays directly to the provider, who then reduces the household bill, rather than transferring the entire subsidy to the parent's bank account first.

If the statement is inconsistent with the CWA, ask the service to explain or correct the session report first; do not pay the wrong bill for a long time before processing.

Asking for leave is not automatically free.

When a child is absent but services are still billed, CCS may continue to pay if eligible. Each child typically has 42 allowable absence days per financial year.

Notify service as soon as possible before absence to ensure accurate records;
After 42 days, certain circumstances such as illness may allow additional absences and may require evidence;
Absences before the start or end of care have additional time conditions, and long-term bookings that have not actually entered care cannot be regarded as subsidized absences;
Service charges, holiday discount and notice policy and government absence entitlement are two sets of rules.

Records can be viewed in Child Care Subsidy → child → Absences in your Centrelink online account.

Official entry point: CCS if your child is absent

What additional support is there?

Multiple children 5 years old or younger using care at the same time

Families may receive higher CCS for their second and younger eligible children. Services Australia will automatically assess based on family records; do not assign the same percentage to each child yourself.

Additional Child Care Subsidy (ACCS)

On the basis of already complying with CCS, additional assistance may be obtained in the following situations:

-eligible grandparent;

Transitioning from a specific income support payment to work;
temporary financial hardship;
child wellbeing, including children at risk of harm, abuse or neglect.

The first three categories are usually applied by families; child wellbeing usually requires communication with the service, which will handle it according to rules. If you encounter difficulties, don’t give up on care just because the current CCS percentage is low. Check the official ACCS qualification first.

Official Portal: Additional Child Care Subsidy

About Airbotix Family Guides

Airbotix Family Guides starts from the real problems faced by Australian families and organizes fragmented government processes into Chinese-language guides that can be used in sequence.

This material addresses childcare and CCS first, without putting curriculum first. The last three QR codes have different uses:

Website: Learn about Airbotix, courses, workshops, and other parent guides;
Sales: Contact Rain to inquire about Airbotix related content, CCS agency is not provided;
Source: Go back to the original Services Australia CCS page to check the latest rules.

This material is general information and does not constitute benefit, tax, legal, immigration, medical or financial advice. The verification date is July 10, 2026 AEST; before formal application, please refer to Services Australia, Department of Education and specific services. The cover gallery image is a schematic representation of a home scene only, and the people pictured are not Airbotix customers, students, or employees.

Next Step

Next go to the correct entrance

CCS applications are subject to Services Australia; childcare vacancies and fees should be verified with Services. Airbotix does not handle government subsidies.

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