Five questions, 60 seconds. Your CCS rate, daily subsidy, annual subsidy and out-of-pocket fees. Same engine the paid dashboard uses.
This is the basic CCS calc — same depth as Services Australia's own. NestWise's full version adds:
Extra Day calculator — is working another day actually worth it after tax + lost subsidy?
CCS ↔ FTB-A ↔ Kindy linkage — one income flows through every entitlement together
First Nations rate, ACCS, activity exemptions — covered, with eligibility flagging
Shared-care % — its impact across CCS, FTB-A, and Kindy in one view
Per-child fees + days + ages, holiday care planning, EOFY reconciliation projection, Smart Alerts on threshold crossings
Both parents' adjusted taxable income added together. CCS rate tapers from $0 income up to roughly $533k where it cuts off.
For multi-child families with kids ≤ 5, the second-child Higher CCS rate auto-applies.
The hourly fee cap is different for under-school-age vs school-age. Kids over 13 don't generally qualify.
What the centre charges per full day (before CCS). Typical range $130-$220 in metro Australia.
1 day5 days10 days (full-time)
The number of days each child attends. Slide to 6 for the typical 3-days-a-week pattern, 10 for full-time.
The 'recognised participation' rules (formerly called the 'activity test') determine your subsidised hours. From 5 Jan 2026 every CCS-eligible family gets 72 hrs/fn minimum (3 days a week) regardless of activity. 49+ hrs of participation unlocks the 100 hrs/fn cap.
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Last step — 30 seconds.
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Not financial advice · FY 2025-26 rates from Services Australia · NestWise estimate, verify before relying on it