Child Care Subsidy Calculator AU 2026-27

Quick answer

This calculator estimates your Child Care Subsidy rate and out-of-pocket gap fee using current Services Australia settings. Your CCS percentage starts at 90% for family income up to $88,520 and tapers by 1 percentage point per extra $5,000, reaching 0% at $538,520. The subsidy is paid on the lower of the actual fee and the hourly rate cap. There is no annual cap.

Item	Value
Maximum standard CCS rate	90% (family income ≤ $88,520)
Taper	−1 percentage point per $5,000 of income; 0% at $538,520
Higher CCS (2nd+ child aged 5 or under)	Own band schedule: 95% → 80% → 50%, ends at $370,727
Hourly rate cap (centre-based, below school age)	$15.19/hour ($13.30 school aged)
3-Day Guarantee (from 5 January 2026)	At least 72 subsidised hours per fortnight
Annual cap	None — removed from the 2021-22 financial year

What Child Care Subsidy covers and the 3-Day Guarantee from 2026

Child Care Subsidy (CCS) is the main fortnightly subsidy that the Australian Government pays directly to your approved early childhood education and care provider. It reduces your fees up-front so you only pay the gap. From 5 January 2026 the activity test is replaced by the 3-Day Guarantee, meaning eligible families receive at least 72 hours of subsidised care per fortnight regardless of how much paid work or study each parent is doing.

This calculator applies the settings published by Services Australia and the Department of Education:

• the 90% maximum rate at or below $88,520 of family adjusted taxable income,
• a 1 percentage point reduction for each additional $5,000 of family income, dropping to 0% at $538,520,
• the hourly rate cap for 2026-27, in force from Monday 6 July 2026 — $15.19 below school age and $13.30 school aged for centre-based and outside school hours care, $14.08 for family day care, and $41.31 per family for in-home care,
• the separate published band schedule for a second-or-later child aged 5 and under,
• the 3-Day Guarantee floor of 72 hours per fortnight.

There is no annual cap on Child Care Subsidy. A per-child annual cap applied before the 2021-22 financial year and was removed from 2021-22 onwards.

The figure is a general estimate — actual subsidy is reconciled at the end of the financial year by Services Australia.

How your CCS rate and the hourly caps are worked out

// Standard CCS rate
if familyATI ≤ $88,520              → rate = 90%
if $88,520 < familyATI < $538,520   → rate = 0.90 - floor((familyATI - 88520) / 5000) × 0.01
if familyATI ≥ $538,520             → rate = 0%

// Higher CCS for a 2nd-or-later child aged 5 or under.
// This is its own band schedule, NOT the standard rate plus a bonus.
if familyATI ≤ $146,437              → 95%
if familyATI <  $191,437             → 0.95 - floor((familyATI - 146437) / 3000) × 0.01
if familyATI <  $270,727             → 80%
if familyATI <  $360,727             → 0.80 - floor((familyATI - 270727) / 3000) × 0.01
if familyATI <  $370,727             → 50%
if familyATI ≥  $370,727             → higher CCS does not apply; use the standard rate
// Never applies to In Home Care, which is subsidised per family, not per child.

// Hourly rate caps (2026-27, from Monday 6 July 2026).
// The split is by the child's SCHOOL STATUS, not by service type.
centre-based   $15.19 below school age  /  $13.30 school aged
OSHC           $15.19 below school age  /  $13.30 school aged
FDC            $14.08 for every child regardless of school status
IHC            $41.31 per FAMILY (not per child)

// Subsidy per hour
subsidisableFee = min(actualHourlyFee, capForType)
subsidyPerHour  = subsidisableFee × applied
gapPerHour      = actualHourlyFee - subsidyPerHour

// 3-Day Guarantee (from 5 Jan 2026)
effectiveHours = max(usedHours, 72) per fortnight

// Annual cap: none. Removed from the 2021-22 financial year.

The CCS rate is set under the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999 and detailed in the Services Australia "How much" page. Hourly rate caps are made under the Child Care Subsidy Minister's Rules 2017 and indexed each 1 July.

Family income, care type and the higher-CCS toggle explained

• Combined family adjusted taxable income (ATI) — for couples this is the sum of both partners' ATI. ATI includes salary sacrifice super, reportable fringe benefits, foreign income and net rental losses. Don't enter just gross salary.
• Type of care — different rate caps apply. Centre-based and outside school hours care share the same pair of caps, split by whether the child is school aged; family day care uses a single rate for every child; in-home care is highest because it covers shift workers and remote families, and is capped per family rather than per child. In practice the lowest effective cap is the school-aged rate of $13.30, which is what most OSHC users get.
• Provider hourly fee — what your provider actually charges per hour. If it is above the rate cap, the gap above the cap is paid by you in full and CCS is calculated only on the cap.
• Hours of care per fortnight — typical full-time use is around 100 hours. The 3-Day Guarantee floor is 72 hours.
• Higher CCS toggle — tick this for the second-or-later child aged 5 or under. Services Australia identifies which child is the "second" — usually the younger child — and applies the higher rate only to them, not to the eldest.
• 3-Day Guarantee — leave on for sessions on or after 5 January 2026. Untick to model the old activity test for the period before then.

Worked CCS estimates across income bands and a second child

1. Typical low-income family, one child, full-time centre. Family ATI $70,000, centre-based, $14/hr fee, 80 hours/fortnight. Rate = 90% → subsidy/hr = min(14, 15.19) × 0.90 = $12.60. Gap = $1.40/hr. Annual subsidy = 80 × 26 × $12.60 = ~$26,208. Annual gap = ~$2,912.

2. Middle-income family, 74% rate. Family ATI $173,280, centre-based, a fee of $15.19/hr right on the cap, 100 hours/fortnight. Increments above $88,520 = 16 → rate = 74%. Subsidy/hr = $15.19 × 0.74 = $11.24. Annual subsidy ≈ 100 × 26 × $11.24 = $29,226. Annual fees $15.19 × 100 × 26 = $39,494, so gap ≈ $10,268.

3. Second child under 5, higher CCS. Same family as Example 2 but with a second child aged 3. The higher rate is read off its own schedule, not derived from the standard rate: $173,280 sits in the $146,437–$191,437 band, so the rate is 95% − 8 steps = 87%. Subsidy/hr = $15.19 × 0.87 = $13.22. Annual subsidy for the second child ≈ $34,360. The eldest stays on the standard 74%.

4. 3-Day Guarantee for a low-activity family. Family ATI $60,000, centre-based, $14/hr, but only 30 hours/fortnight of actual care booked. Under the old activity test, low-activity families could be capped at 36 hours/fortnight. Under the 3-Day Guarantee from 5 Jan 2026, they receive subsidy on at least 72 hours/fortnight if they choose to use them. Subsidy at 72 hours: 72 × 26 × ($14 × 0.90) = ~$23,587.

5. Provider above the cap. Family ATI $90,000, centre-based, $20/hr fee (above the $15.19 cap for a child below school age), 80 hrs/fortnight. Rate = 90% (the first $5,000 step does not bite until $93,520). Subsidy/hr = $15.19 × 0.90 = $13.67. Gap/hr = $20 − $13.67 = $6.33. Annual gap = 80 × 26 × $6.33 = ~$13,164. Worth checking whether a provider closer to the rate cap is available locally.

6. High-income family, just under the higher-CCS cut-off. Family ATI $370,000, centre-based, $15.19/hr, 100 hrs/fortnight. The standard rate is 34%, giving ≈ $13,428 a year for the eldest. A second child aged 5 or under still qualifies for the higher rate at 50%, because $370,000 is below the $370,727 limit — but at $370,727 the higher rate disappears entirely and every child drops to the standard rate. That is a genuine cliff worth knowing about. Note there is no annual cap clipping either figure.

CCS traps: the rate cap, combined income and end-of-year reconciliation

• Forget the rate cap. A provider charging well above the cap (common in inner-city Sydney / Melbourne) silently inflates the gap fee. The subsidy never grows above the cap regardless of what the provider charges.
• Activity test is gone (mostly). From 5 January 2026 the 3-Day Guarantee replaces the old activity test for most families. The calculator includes a toggle so you can compare. Once the change is bedded in, leave it on.
• Combined family income, not yours alone. For couples, both partners' ATI is added together. Salary sacrifice super counts as RESC and lifts ATI.
• Higher CCS only for the second-or-later child under 5. It does not apply to the eldest child even when there are multiple children in care, and it stops once the eldest in the bracket turns 6 or stops care. It is also never paid for In Home Care, which is subsidised per family rather than per child.
• The higher rate is its own schedule, not a bonus. It is not "standard rate plus 30 points". At $200,000 of family income the published higher rate is 80%, and at $370,727 it vanishes completely rather than tapering — every child in the family reverts to the standard rate.
• There is no annual cap. A per-child annual cap applied before the 2021-22 financial year and was removed from 2021-22 onwards. Any calculator or article still applying one is understating your subsidy.
• Reconciliation can claw back overpayments. Centrelink withholds 5% by default to soften end-of-year reconciliation. If you under-estimate income at the start, you may owe money in October when ATO data arrives.
• CCS is paid to the provider, not the family. You see only the gap fee on your statement. Use the Services Australia statement of CCS in myGov to see what was paid on your behalf.
• Approved providers only. CCS does not apply to nannies, babysitters or playgroups that are not registered as approved early childhood services.

Calculators you might also try

• Family Tax Benefit Calculator (AU) — main per-child Centrelink top-up.
• Parental Leave Pay Calculator (AU) — government paid parental leave.
• Commonwealth Rent Assistance Calculator — extra payment for renting families.
• JobSeeker Payment Calculator — when one parent is between jobs.
• Salary Sacrifice Super Calculator — affects family ATI used in the CCS test.

Sources:

• Services Australia — How much CCS you can get
• Services Australia — Activity level and subsidised hours (transitional)
• Services Australia — Child care subsidy changes (3-Day Guarantee from 5 Jan 2026)
• Department of Education — CCS hourly rate cap
• A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999