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Start Strong for families

The Start Strong program provides fee relief to families with preschool aged children participating in eligible early childhood education and care (ECEC) services.

What this means for families

Children in community and mobile preschools

In 2026, there will be two categories of fee relief:

  • children eligible for the maximum fee relief rate can receive up to $4,456 depending on the hours they are enrolled
  • all other children can receive up to $3,565 depending on the hours they are enrolled.

Fee relief is paid to the service you nominate and passed on to you as a reduction to your fees.

Children in long day care services

In 2026, there will be two categories of fee relief:

Children eligible for the maximum fee relief rate can receive up to:

  • $2,563 per year for children aged 4 and above
  • $769 per year for children aged 3 years old.

All other children can receive up to:

  • $1,783 per year for children aged 4 and above
  • $423 per year for children aged 3 years old.

Fee relief is paid to the service you nominate and passed on to you as a reduction to your fees.

This is in addition to Australian Government Child Care Subsidy (CCS) payments, which most families in long day care services are eligible to receive.

The CCS payment does not apply to families with children enrolled in community and mobile preschools or public preschools.

How is fee relief calculated?

If your child is enrolled in an eligible community or mobile preschool, the fee relief rate will be calculated based on the number of hours your child is enrolled, and characteristics of your child and service.

The following children are eligible for the maximum rate of fee relief, up to $4,456, scaled proportionately to the number of hours they are enrolled:

  • children enrolled in a service located in areas of greater socio-economic disadvantage
  • children enrolled in a service located in regional or remote areas
  • children enrolled in a service operated by an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations
  • children from low-income families (children from a family holding a Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card (where the child is a named dependent on the card), or a Veteran Card, issued by the Australian Government
  • children with disability and/or additional needs
  • Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children.

All other children will be eligible for fee relief up to $3,565, scaled proportionately to the number of hours they are enrolled.

Example 1

If your child is eligible for the maximum fee relief rate (see above) and attends a community preschool for 600 hours a year (15 hours a week) or more, you will be eligible for $4,456 a year in fee relief. If your child attends fewer than 15 hours a week, the amount of fee relief will be scaled proportionately.

Example 2

If your child is not eligible for the maximum fee relief rate and attends a community preschool 600 hours a year (15 hours a week) or more, you will be eligible for $3,565, a year in fee relief. If your child attends fewer than 15 hours a week, the amount of fee relief will be scaled proportionately.

Please talk to your service about which fee relief rate applies for your child. Alternatively, please refer to 'Table 4: Fee Relief Payment - children eligible for the maximum rate of relief' and 'Table 5: Fee Relief Payment - all other children' in Appendix 1.2 of the program guidelines.

If your child is enrolled in an eligible long day care service, your service will apply the Australian Government’s Child Care Subsidy first to reduce your fees. The NSW Government’s fee relief is then applied to further reduce your fees.

The following children are eligible for the maximum rate of fee relief, up to $2,563 per year for 4-year-old children and up to $769 per year for 3-year-old children:

  • children enrolled in services located in areas of greater socio-economic disadvantage, or
  • children enrolled in services located in regional or remote areas, or
  • children enrolled in services operated by Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, or
  • Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children.

All other children are eligible for fee relief up to $1,783 per year for 4-year-old children and up to $423 per year for 3-year-old children.

The total fee relief amount is divided by the number of weeks your long day care service operates to provide a reduction to your child’s weekly fees.

For example, if a service is open 50 weeks a year, they will pass on fee relief reductions after the application of the Child Care Subsidy of:

  • up to $51.26 per week for children eligible for maximum funding who are at least 4 years old on, or before, 31 July 2026
  • up to $35.66 per week for all other children who are at least 4 years old on, or before, 31 July 2026
  • up to $15.38 per week for children eligible for maximum funding who are 3 years old on, or before, 31 July 2026
  • up to $8.46 per week for all other children who are 3 years old on, or before 31 July 2026.

Please talk to your service about which fee relief rate applies for your child. You can also refer to Start Strong for Long Day Care.

How to access fee relief from 2026

You must complete a fee relief declaration form for every service your child is enrolled in and nominate which service you would like to receive fee relief from. You can only access fee relief from one participating community preschool or long day care service at any given time. It is your choice which service you would like to receive fee relief from.

You can ask your service for a fee relief declaration form, or you can download a form and provide it to the service. You do not need to send the form to the department.

Fee relief will be passed on to you by your service as a reduction to your fees. Services will let you know a fee relief reduction has been made to your fees, such as via a regular invoice, statement or other means. You will still need to pay any remaining fees and/or levies after the fee relief has been applied.

Download the families flyer

Frequently asked questions

Ask your service if they are participating in the Start Strong program.

No, you can only access fee relief from one participating community preschool or long day care service at any given time.

To receive fee relief, you must nominate which service you are choosing to receive your fee relief from in the fee relief declaration form. Your service can assist with this process.

The choice of which service to nominate is up to you. It’s best to nominate the service where your child will spend the most time.

Fee relief funding is linked to enrolment, not attendance. If your child is sick and does not attend on one of their enrolled days, your fee relief amount does not change. You will still receive a reduced weekly fee from your service.

Your weekly fee reduction begins from the time of enrolment (provided you have completed a fee relief declaration form).

If you have concerns that you are not receiving the full fee relief, please talk with your service first. Please contact the department if you still have questions via email at ecec.funding@det.nsw.edu.au.

Yes, you can change which service you have nominated to receive fee relief from at any time, just follow these steps:

  1. Complete a new fee relief declaration form that tells the current service to stop giving fee relief to you. Give this form to the service.
  2. Complete a second new fee relief declaration form that tells your new service to start giving you fee relief. Give this form to the new service.

Services must not increase fees to offset the benefit of fee relief payments.

Service may increase fees due to reasonable increases in operating costs such as staff wages. Services must retain evidence to support the fee increase as part of the department’s compliance checks.

More information

Please contact your service to find out more about accessing Start Strong fee relief for your child.

More information is available in the:

Category:

  • Early childhood education

Business Unit:

  • Early Childhood Outcomes
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