Families who receive Government financial support for childcare will now receive at least three days of subsidised childcare per week, under new laws that come into effect today.
The law, passed in early 2025, grants subsidies to parents who earn a combined income of up to $535,279 annually.
The Government estimates the changes will make an additional 100,000 families eligible for subsidised early learning.
The new laws
The new system applies to all families who receive the Government’s Child Care Subsidy (CCS).
From today, all families will receive at least 72 hours of subsidised childcare per fortnight. Families caring for First Nations children, or who each work or study more than 48 hours a fortnight, can access up to 100 hours per fortnight.
Families earning under $85,000 will get 90% of childcare costs covered. The subsidy is reduced by 1% for every $5,000 earned over $85,000. There is no subsidy for families earning more than $535,279.
Changes
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The new scheme scraps the previous Coalition Government’s childcare subsidy activity test.
That eligibility system, introduced in 2018, calculated how much government financial support families received based on a parents’ working or study hours.
The policy was designed to encourage greater workforce participation. A 2024 Productivity Commission report found the test did not directly help more people get into work.
Responses
Early Childhood Education Minister Jess Walsh said the reforms overhaul a system that left children “locked out of quality early education” because of their parents’ work or study arrangements.
The Coalition voted against the bill, arguing that parents who are working or studying are de-prioritised under this law.
In a statement to TDA, Acting Shadow Education and Early Learning Minister Jonno Duniam also said the new law “ignores... long waitlists and safety concerns at child care centres”.
