How to get your Child Care Subsidy top-up and avoid delays

How to get your Child Care Subsidy top-up and avoid delays

---

Important note: Child Care Subsidy rules and time limits can change. Check your myGov Inbox and current Services Australia guidance for information specific to your family.

Tax time may come with more than a refund for families using child care. Each year, Services Australia checks whether the Child Care Subsidy paid during the previous financial year matched the family’s actual income. This process is called CCS balancing.

The outcome may be a top-up, no change or a debt. Services Australia says almost 80 per cent of families received a top-up or had no change last year, but balancing cannot begin until the required income information has been confirmed.

If your outcome still has not arrived, one small piece of family admin may be holding things up. Here is what to check.

What is Child Care Subsidy balancing?

---

Your CCS rate during the year is based on an estimate of your family income. From mid-August, Services Australia compares that estimate with your actual income for the completed financial year and checks the attendance information supplied by your child care service.

Once all the information is available, Services Australia calculates whether you received the correct subsidy. It will write to you through your myGov Inbox or by post when balancing is complete.

---

What you need to do

---

How you confirm your income depends on whether you need to lodge a tax return:

• If you lodge a tax return: lodge it with the Australian Taxation Office. The ATO will send the income information to Services Australia.
• If you do not need to lodge: tell Services Australia through your Centrelink online account linked to myGov, the myGov app or the Express Plus Centrelink app, then confirm your actual income.
• If you have a partner: they must also lodge their tax return or advise Services Australia that they do not need to lodge.

Telling the ATO that you do not need to lodge is not enough on its own. You must also notify Services Australia so it has the income information needed to balance your CCS.

---

The partner detail that can delay balancing

---

CCS is based on family income, so Services Australia generally needs information for both members of a couple. You may have completed everything on your side while the process is still waiting for your partner’s tax return or non-lodgement advice.

You can check whose information is missing through Payment Balancing in your Centrelink online account or the Express Plus Centrelink app.

What if you separated during the year?

---

You do not need to contact an ex-partner to ask for their income. Call the Centrelink families line on 136 150 to discuss how the income can be confirmed. The same number can help if your partner died during the financial year or there is another reason you cannot provide the information online.

What your CCS balancing outcome could mean

---

There are three possible outcomes:

• Top-up: Services Australia did not pay enough CCS during the year and may pay the outstanding amount. Existing family assistance debts may be deducted first.
• No change: the amount of CCS paid was correct.
• Debt: Services Australia paid too much CCS and some money may need to be repaid.

If you receive a debt, the outcome letter will explain it. Services Australia says families experiencing financial hardship should contact them to discuss repayment options they can afford.

Why a debt can happen

---

A debt does not necessarily mean someone has done something wrong. Income and circumstances can change during the year through extra shifts, a new job, unpaid leave, separation or other changes that were not reflected in the original estimate.

Changes such as extra shifts, a new job or time away from work can all affect the final calculation.

Services Australia automatically withholds 5 per cent of CCS to reduce the risk of overpayment. Families can choose to increase the withholding percentage in their online account if they would prefer a larger buffer.

How to check your CCS balancing progress

---

In the Express Plus Centrelink app, select More, then Child Care Subsidy, followed by Payment Balancing. In your Centrelink online account through myGov, select Menu, My family, Child Care and then Payment Balancing.

The status will show whether income information is still missing, whether Services Australia has everything it needs or whether balancing is complete. Once income is confirmed, balancing may take a couple of weeks, although it can happen sooner.

Avoid a surprise next year

---

Updating your family income estimate when work or family circumstances change can reduce the chance of an unexpected debt. It may also help your CCS rate better reflect what is happening in your household during the year.

Your quick CCS balancing checklist

---

• Lodge your tax return, or advise Services Australia that you do not need to lodge.
• Make sure your partner has done the same.
• Check Payment Balancing in myGov or the Express Plus Centrelink app.
• Read your outcome letter carefully when it arrives.
• Update your income estimate whenever circumstances change.

For current instructions, time limits and information about your circumstances, visit Services Australia’s Child Care Subsidy balancing guide.