CCS for Grandparents and Kinship Carers
If you are a grandparent raising a grandchild, there is specific grandparent child care subsidy support. Grandparents with most of the care can get 100 subsidised hours a fortnight without any work test, and those on an income support payment can have the whole fee covered through the Additional Child Care Subsidy. Kinship carers placed by the state have their own route. This page explains which applies to you.
This guide is for grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and other relatives who have stepped in to raise a child. It covers when you count as the main carer, the grandparent category of ACCS, the work test exemption, the difference between formal and informal kinship care, applying, and help beyond the subsidy.
If you are new to the subsidy altogether, start with our overview of the Child Care Subsidy.
Grandparents as primary carers
For grandparent child care subsidy purposes, you are the primary carer when you or your partner have at least 65% of the care of your grandchild and make the day-to-day decisions about their care, welfare and development. At that level, you receive 100 subsidised hours a fortnight, whatever your work hours, and may qualify for more help.
Sixty-five per cent is roughly nine nights in every fortnight.
The rules count great-grandparents too, and grandparents connected to the child through adoption, a step or former step relationship, a de facto partner, surrogacy or assisted conception.
Grandparents who share care at a lower level can still claim standard CCS for the days they pay for, as long as they have at least two nights a fortnight and are responsible for the fees.
Many grandparent carers are older than most parents at our centre, and some have not dealt with childcare for decades. Our team is always happy to walk you through how things work today.
Primary carer means
- 65% or more of the care
- Day-to-day decisions
- Responsible for the fees
Stepping inThe ACCS grandparent category
The ACCS grandparent category is for primary-carer grandparents who receive an income support payment. It meets the entire childcare fee as long as the hourly charge stays under $18.23, across as many as 100 hours in each fortnight, and it has no end date and no work or study condition. Our $170 day falls comfortably inside that limit.
Compare that with standard CCS. A grandparent couple earning $120,000 without income support receives 83.70%, leaving a gap of about $30.15 on each $170 day.
With the ACCS grandparent subsidy, the same day costs nothing, because our hourly fee of about $15.45 is well below the $18.23 limit.
Over three days a week, that is the difference between about $90 a week and nothing at all.
Income support payments include the Age Pension, JobSeeker, Carer Payment and Disability Support Pension, among others.
The official details are on the Services Australia grandparent subsidy page.
Check the standard figure for your own income with our childcare cost estimator, and read more in our guide to the Additional Child Care Subsidy.
A $170 day at Lead
- Standard CCS, $120,000
- Gap $30.15
- ACCS grandparent
- Gap $0.00
- Hours
- Up to 100 a fortnight
No time limitActivity test exemptions
A grandparent who provides at least 65% of a grandchild's care is exempt from the recognised participation rules, so they receive 100 subsidised hours a fortnight whether or not they work, study or volunteer. That is the higher level most families only reach when both parents work more than 48 hours a fortnight.
The 3 Day Guarantee already gives any eligible household a 72-hour floor, so in practice the exemption moves you up to the 100-hour level.
One hundred hours covers four 11-hour days a week at Lead, with a little to spare.
The exemption applies whether or not you receive income support. What income support adds is the full-fee ACCS rate.
Our guide to the activity test and exemptions covers the other situations that also lead to 100 hours.
Hours for grandparent carers
- Under 65% care
- 72, or 100 if eligible
- 65% care or more
- 100 hours
- Plus income support
- 100 hours, full fee
100 hoursInformal versus formal kinship care
Kinship care means a relative or family friend raising a child who cannot live with their parents. Informal kinship care is a private family arrangement, while formal kinship care is a placement made through the state, in NSW by the Department of Communities and Justice. The childcare help you can get depends on which applies.
Informal carers who are grandparents follow the rules above. Other relatives in informal care claim standard CCS, with hours set by the usual rules.
Children in a formal kinship placement can be eligible for the child wellbeing category of ACCS, which the childcare service applies for and which usually covers the full fee.
Formal carers may also receive allowances from the state to help with a child's costs. Your caseworker can explain what applies.
If you are not sure which type you are, the question is simple: did a government agency place the child with you? If yes, it is formal.
Which help applies
- Informal, grandparent
- 100 hrs, ACCS if on income support
- Informal, other relative
- Standard CCS
- Formal placement
- ACCS child wellbeing
Family firstHow to apply
Grandparents apply for CCS, and the ACCS grandparent subsidy if eligible, online through myGov, where your Centrelink account lives, or in person at any Centrelink service centre, along with documents about the care arrangement. Formal kinship carers talk to the childcare service, which applies for the child wellbeing subsidy for them.
You can claim CCS and ACCS at the same time if you are new to childcare.
Once your grandchild has a place, we create the enrolment and you confirm it in myGov, exactly as parents do.
If you are not comfortable with computers, a Centrelink office can help you make the claim in person.
Our team is happy to sit down with you. Ring (02) 7238 8668, or read more about our centre in St Ives before you visit.
Steps for grandparents
- Claim CCS and ACCS via Centrelink
- Provide care documents
- Accept a place with us
- Confirm the enrolment
We will helpSupport beyond the subsidy
Beyond childcare subsidies, grandparent and kinship carers may be able to get Family Tax Benefit, and Services Australia has staff who specialise in helping grandparents raising grandchildren. Formal kinship carers in NSW receive support and allowances through the Department of Communities and Justice.
Three- and four-year-olds at eligible long day care services may also attract NSW Start Strong fee relief, which is taken off fees on top of any subsidy.
For a grandparent on the standard rate, Start Strong can reduce a four-year-old's fees by up to $1,783 a year at eligible services.
Carer support groups can be a lifeline. Raising a grandchild can be isolating, and talking with others in the same situation helps.
At the centre, grandparents are part of our community like any family, and welcome at every event.
See your likely costs with our Lead fee estimator.
Other help to ask about
- Family Tax Benefit
- Services Australia grandparent support
- NSW kinship carer support
- Start Strong fee relief
You are not aloneGrandparent carers, answered
Do working grandparents qualify?+
Yes, working grandparents qualify for standard CCS based on their family income, and with 65% or more care they receive 100 subsidised hours a fortnight. The full-fee ACCS grandparent subsidy, though, needs an income support payment, so grandparents who work and receive no income support stay on the standard rate.
What proof is needed?+
Services Australia will ask for documents showing the care arrangement and your relationship to the child. These may include court or parenting orders, letters from schools, doctors or community workers, or a statutory declaration. It will tell you exactly what it needs when you claim.
Does it cover full fees?+
Yes, if you receive the ACCS grandparent subsidy the fee is normally paid in full, because the subsidy meets the whole charge up to $18.23 an hour for as many as 100 hours each fortnight, well above our hourly rate. Without income support, standard CCS applies and a gap remains.
Grandparents are always welcome here
Come for a tour with your grandchild and we will explain the subsidy side too.