Child Care Subsidy is starting again soon

If you were getting Child Care Subsidy (CCS) before 6 April 2020, it will automatically start again. That’s if:

you’ve stayed eligible
your enrolment is current and confirmed.

If you’re new to child care, you should claim CCS as soon as possible. From 13 July 2020, you’ll pay full fees unless you’re getting CCS.

Before CCS starts again, you should follow these 5 steps to make sure:

you’ve stayed eligible
we pay the right amount.

1. Give us your 2020-21 family income estimate

We recently asked you to give us your family income estimate for next financial year. Make sure you’ve done this, so we pay you the right CCS percentage.

Remember, you should always estimate your income as best as possible.

If your income is hard to estimate, you can increase your CCS withholdings.

2. Check your activity hours

We use your activity level to work out how many hours of CCS you can get a fortnight. Your activity hours should match the hours you’re currently working, studying or volunteering. This includes if you’re getting income from JobKeeper payment.

You don’t need to update your hours if:

you’re on leave from work
you need to self isolate.

From 13 July 2020, we’re easing the activity test for CCS. This means you may be able to apply for extra activity hours if COVID-19 has affected you. We’ll have more information about how to do this in July.

3. Make sure your child is immunised

To get CCS your child must meet immunisations requirements. If they’re not up to date, your CCS won’t restart again on 13 July 2020.

4. Check your child’s enrolment

We can only pay CCS if your child’s enrolment details are current. If your child’s stopped going to child care, their enrolment may have ended. Check they’re current, so your CCS will start again. Talk to your child care service if you need to re-enrol your child.

5. Confirm your income for 2018-19 if you need to

When you get CCS you need to confirm your family’s income after the end of each financial year. There are time limits for how long you have to do this.

If you got CCS for 2018-19 you need to confirm your 2018-19 income by 30 June 2020. If you don’t, your CCS or ACCS won’t restart again on 13 July 2020.