the CCS activity test explained: how your hours affect your subsidy
last updated: february 2026
catherine alderstein is an early childhood policy researcher and mother of two from Melbourne. she covers government payments, childcare policy, and family economics for mini mode.
the Child Care Subsidy has two levers. the first is your family income, which decides your subsidy percentage — anywhere from 90% down to zero. the second is the activity test, which decides how many hours of care that percentage actually applies to. you can qualify for a generous subsidy rate and still end up with very few subsidised hours if you fail the activity test.
from January 2026 the rules changed materially. the Three Day Guarantee now gives every eligible family a floor of 72 subsidised hours per fortnight regardless of activity. here's how the whole thing works in practice.
the activity test tiers
Services Australia looks at the parent who does the fewer hours of activity. that person's hours set the limit for the whole family. if you're a single parent, it's just your hours. the tiers are set per fortnight, not per week.
| hours of activity per fortnight | subsidised hours per fortnight | roughly equals |
|---|---|---|
| less than 8 | 0 (or 72 with guarantee) | nothing / 3 days |
| 8 to 16 | 36 | 1.5 days |
| 16 to 48 | 72 | 3 days |
| more than 48 | 100 | 4+ days |
one thing that trips people up — hours are per fortnight, not per week. so if you work 10 hours a week, that's 20 hours per fortnight, which sits in the 16-to-48 tier and gets you 72 subsidised hours. a single 8-hour shift a week puts you in the 8-to-16 tier and only earns 36 subsidised hours.
what counts as recognised activity
the definition is deliberately broad. if you're doing something that improves your employability or you're caring for someone, it probably counts. the main categories:
- paid work — employed hours, including leave with pay, rostered days off, and reasonable breaks
- self-employment — hours spent running or setting up a business, including admin and invoicing
- approved study or training — university, TAFE, apprenticeships, English classes. includes reasonable study time at home
- volunteering — unpaid work with a not-for-profit or community group
- actively looking for work — up to 36 hours per fortnight, for a maximum of 6 months at a time
- unpaid work in a family business — up to 36 hours per fortnight
- caring for a person with a disability or a family member with a serious illness
- travel time to and from the activity counts towards your total
you don't submit timesheets for most of these. you estimate your hours when you claim CCS through myGov, and Services Australia takes your word for it. they may ask for evidence if something looks off.
the Three Day Guarantee (from January 2026)
the Three Day Guarantee is the biggest change to CCS in years. from 1 January 2026, every family earning under $533,000 gets at least 72 subsidised hours per fortnight — three days of care — even if they do zero recognised activity.
this replaces the old rule where a parent doing less than 8 hours of activity got zero subsidised hours. if you were a stay-at-home parent, the old system effectively locked you out of any subsidised care. under the guarantee, that family now gets the same 72 hours as a parent working 20 hours a week.
families that do more than 16 hours of activity per fortnight still get 72 hours under the regular activity test, so the guarantee only changes things for the lowest-activity tier. families doing more than 48 hours still get 100 subsidised hours — the guarantee is a floor, not a ceiling.
worked example
a Melbourne family with one child in long day care, combined income $110,000. one parent works full-time (40+ hours a week), the other is at home full-time with no paid activity. centre charges $140 per day and the child attends three days a week.
- subsidy rate at $110,000: around 78%
- activity hours (lower earner): 0 — but the Three Day Guarantee kicks in, giving 72 subsidised hours per fortnight
- child attends 30 hours per fortnight (3 days × 10 hrs)
- daily fee $140, hourly rate $14 (under the $14.63 cap)
- subsidy: 78% × $14 × 30 hours = $327.60 per fortnight
- out-of-pocket: $420 − $327.60 = $92.40 per fortnight (about $31 per day)
before the guarantee, this family would have received zero subsidised hours and paid the full $420 per fortnight. the change saves them roughly $8,500 a year.
exemptions and the low-income rule
several groups skip the activity test entirely and get the full 100 subsidised hours per fortnight:
- families earning under $85,279 — automatic 100 hours regardless of activity
- grandparent carers who are the primary carer of a grandchild
- families on certain income support including JobSeeker, Parenting Payment, and Disability Support Pension
- temporary hardship — Services Australia can grant an exemption for up to 6 months during a crisis
- children at risk — additional CCS applies with different rules
the $85,279 threshold matches the top end of the 90% subsidy band. if you're in that band, you effectively get maximum subsidy on maximum hours — the best-case scenario for the scheme.
frequently asked questions
how does the CCS activity test work?
Services Australia looks at the lower-earning parent's hours of recognised activity per fortnight and assigns subsidised hours: 8-16 hours = 36 subsidised, 16-48 = 72, and 48+ = 100.
what is the Three Day Guarantee?
from January 2026, every family earning under $533,000 gets at least 72 subsidised hours per fortnight regardless of the activity test. it's a floor, not a cap.
what counts as recognised activity?
paid work, self-employment, study, volunteering, job hunting, unpaid work in a family business, and caring. travel time to the activity counts too.
is there an exemption from the activity test?
yes — families under $85,279 get 100 hours automatically. grandparent carers, hardship cases, and certain income support recipients are also exempt.
estimate your CCS
plug your family income and activity hours into the calculator to see exactly how many subsidised hours you'll get and what your out-of-pocket cost per day will be.