Author: CCSC

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CCS News CCS Rules

CCS rules for an FDC educator’s child

There are rules around claiming Child Care Subsidy (CCS) for Family Day Care (FDC) and In Home Care educators who care for relatives. The rules do not apply to Centre Based Day Care (CBDC) or Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) educators.

You generally can’t claim CCS for an educator’s own child on any day they are working as a Family Day Care (FDC) educator. This applies even if the child attends another FDC service.

CCS should be payable if the child attends a Centre Based Day Care (CBDC) or Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) service instead.

As a provider, you must:

  • check whether any parents (or their partners) are FDC educators
  • confirm whether an exception applies
  • collect and keep the required evidence.

Please refer to the table below for the exceptions and the evidence required.

ExceptionEvidence required
The child has one of the medical conditions listed in Schedule 1 or 2 of the Minister’s RulesThe provider must collect and keep documentary evidence of the diagnosis. The diagnosis must be less than 24 months old, unless the diagnosis is permanent.
The child is undergoing assessment for disability under the Inclusion Support ProgramThe provider must collect and keep documentary evidence of the diagnosis (including undergoing disability assessment). The evidence must be current and issued by a relevant professional.
The child lives in a remote or very remote areaThe provider must collect and keep documentary evidence, such as evidence of the address.
At the time care is provided to the child, the parent was working for at least 2 hours at another job (not as an FDC educator)The provider must collect and keep documentary evidence that shows the parent was working for at least 2 hours at the time the care was provided by your service.
At the time care is provided to the child, the parent was engaged in scheduled activities as part of a Certificate III level or above qualificationThe provider must collect and keep documentary evidence that shows the parent was engaged in the activity at the time the care was provided by your service.
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CCS News CCS Rules

Claiming CCS during service closures – what providers need to know

You must tell us within 14 days if you close your service or change your operating hours. This is a requirement under Family Assistance Law.

You can generally only claim the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) when your service is open, except for public holidays, declared emergency periods, or approved closures for mandatory national child safety training.

Please refer to the CCS rules during service closures listed below. Whether you can claim CCS depends on the reason for the closure.

Mandatory National Child Safety Training: Services approved for CCS can close for up to 5 hours a year so staff can complete mandatory national child safety training via the Geccko platform. These closures must begin no earlier than 5:00 pm.

Public Holidays: You can claim CCS for a public holiday even when the service is closed, but you must only claim for children who would have normally attended on that specific day.

Declared Emergency Periods: During a formally declared CCS period of emergency, you may be eligible to claim CCS and waive gap fees even when your service is closed.

Standard Closures & Absences: For standard, non-emergency full-day closures (such as staff training days outside the national safety training parameters, or operational shutdowns), you must not submit session reports or claim absences for CCS.

If your service is closed for part of the day, your reported sessions of care must align with your opening hours.

If you close your service, you must not submit session reports unless it is a public holiday or during a period of emergency where your service would have been otherwise open.

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CCS News CCS Rates

Child Care Subsidy hourly rate caps from July 2026 (FY2027)

The Child Care Subsidy (CCS) hourly rate caps will go up from 6 July 2026.

The hourly rate caps are adjusted annually based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The maximum hourly rate we subsidise is based on the type of approved care. The 2026–2027 (FY2027) hourly rate caps for each care type are outlined below.

Care typeHourly rate cap
for children below school age		Hourly rate cap
for school-age children
Centre Based Day Care$15.19$13.30
Outside School Hours Care$15.19$13.30
Family Day Care$14.08$14.08
In Home Care (per family)$41.31$41.31

You can find more detailed from the Family eligibility and entitlement page published by the Department of Education.