If your family has two or more children aged 5 or under in approved care, your second and later children can get a higher CCS subsidy — up to 95% (instead of the standard 90%). The higher rate operates on its own income test with four bands: 95% up to family income of $141,321, tapering down to a flat 80% between $186,321 and $265,611, then tapering further down to a 50% floor between $355,611 and $370,727, after which the higher rate stops entirely. Your eldest under-13 child still gets the standard CCS rate; only the second-and-later 5-and-under children get the uplift.
This guide walks through the exact bands, which child gets which rate, and the gotcha that catches most families — the higher-rate cohort is children aged 5 or under, and each child ages out on their 6th birthday, not their 5th. Corrected 2026-09-26 after an audit found the earlier wording said "under 5, not under 6" and lopped a full year of eligibility off in the reader's head.
Who qualifies for higher CCS
You qualify for higher CCS if all of the following are true:
- You're eligible for standard CCS in the first place (see How much CCS will I get?).
- You have two or more children aged 5 or under in approved care.
- At least one of those children is using approved care that fortnight (not just enrolled and absent).
- Your family income is below $370,727 (above that, higher rate switches off).
If only one of your children is in care that fortnight, no higher rate applies — the higher-rate uplift requires multiple 5-and-unders actively in care. Higher rate also doesn't apply to in-home care sessions; it's centre-based, family day care, and OSHC only.
Which child gets the higher rate
The standard rate (up to 90%) always applies to the eldest CCS-eligible child (under 13 and not yet in secondary school).
The higher rate (up to 95%) applies to the second and any later children aged 5 or under.
A worked example: a family has three kids — aged 8, 4, and 2. The 8-year-old is outside the 5-and-under cohort so they get standard CCS. Within the 5-and-under cohort ([4, 2]), the eldest is the 4-year-old — they're the standard-rate child within the cohort. Only the 2-year-old gets higher CCS. When the 4-year-old turns 5 they STAY in the cohort (5 is still ≤5) and stay the standard-rate child within it; the 2-year-old still gets higher. When the 4-year-old turns 6 they age out of the cohort entirely and the 2-year-old becomes the eldest of a cohort of one — no higher rate applies at that point because higher rate needs "two or more 5-and-under in care".
The income bands — exact figures for 2026-27
The higher rate has its own income test with four bands:
| Combined family income | Higher rate (2nd-and-later 5-and-under child) |
|---|---|
| $141,321 or less | 95% (maximum) |
| $143,274 – $188,272 | Tapers from 95% to 80% (1% per $3,000) |
| $186,321 – $267,562 | Flat 80% |
| $265,611 – $357,562 | Tapers from 80% to 50% (1% per $3,000) |
| $355,611 – $367,562 | Flat 50% (the floor) |
| $370,727 or more | 0% (higher rate switches off; standard rate may still apply to the eldest) |
A worked example: a family with combined income of $200,000 has one child at the eldest position and a 3-year-old as the second-5-and-under. The eldest gets the standard rate (at $200k, that's 90% − ($200,000 − $88,520) / $5,000 × 1% = 67.06%). The 3-year-old falls in the higher-rate "flat 80%" band, so they get 80% — a 12.94% uplift on the same fee.
Calculate your 2026-27 Child Care Subsidy → · Open the full dashboard view → The free version auto-applies the Higher CCS Second Child rate when you have multi-child <= 5. The dashboard version handles per-child fees + days + ages for the exact picture.
When the higher rate switches off
Each child leaves the 5-and-under cohort entirely on their 6th birthday. Within the cohort, a child stops being a higher-rate child if they become the eldest of the cohort (older siblings age out or leave care). Transitions to watch for:
- A higher-rate child turns 6 → they age out of the 5-and-under cohort entirely and get standard CCS from that point.
- The eldest of the cohort turns 6 → the next-eldest becomes the "first 5-and-under"; they switch from higher to standard, while the one below them keeps higher.
- Down to one 5-and-under → no higher rate applies to anyone (the "two or more 5-and-under in care" rule fails).
The age-gate at 6 is strict. There's no taper as kids approach 6 — the change is instant on their birthday.
The four gotchas that catch families out
1. The eldest child never gets the higher rate. Even if all your kids are 5 and under, the eldest always gets the standard rate. Only the second-and-later 5-and-under children get the uplift. It is easy to assume "all my 5-and-unders get 95%" — they don't.
2. Each child has to actually attend. The higher rate applies on a per-session basis. If your 3-year-old has a sick day and doesn't attend, that day they're absent — and the higher rate doesn't apply to that session.
3. Higher rate has its OWN income test. The thresholds above ($141,321 / $186,321 / $265,611 / $355,611 / $370,727) are completely separate from the standard CCS income test ($88,520 / $538,520). A family above $370,727 still gets standard CCS on the eldest child — they just lose the higher-rate uplift on the second-and-later 5-and-unders.
4. In-home care doesn't get the higher rate. The 95% uplift only applies to centre-based day care, family day care, and OSHC. In-home care sessions are paid at the standard rate even for second-and-later 5-and-unders.
How NestWise calculates higher CCS
NestWise's CCS Calculator implements the multi-child logic step by step:
- Sort children by age — eldest first.
- Apply standard rate to the eldest under-13.
- Apply higher rate to the second-and-later 5-and-unders, using the income-band formula above.
- Standard rate for school-age children (5+) regardless of position.
- Combine per-child subsidies into your family total.
The engine is locked behind a regression suite that runs on every code change. The full source list is on the sources page. NestWise updates rates within weeks of the Government publishing them.
What to read next
- How much Child Care Subsidy will I get in 2026-27? — the foundational standard-CCS explainer.
- Family Tax Benefit Part A — how much will I get? — FTB-A runs alongside CCS for all your kids regardless of higher-rate eligibility.
- The FTB-CCS debt trap — the most common cause of a Centrelink debt at tax time when both CCS rates change with income.