ACCS Grandparent Childcare Subsidy: What Tasmania Kinship Carers Get

What ACCS Grandparent Is

The Additional Child Care Subsidy (Grandparent) is a federal payment that covers up to 100% of approved childcare fees — up to 120% of the standard hourly rate cap — for up to 100 hours per fortnight. It completely removes the activity test that other carers have to meet.

For a working-age grandparent who took on a grandchild and needs full-time day care to keep a job, or a retired grandparent using occasional care to manage health appointments, ACCS Grandparent is the difference between affording childcare and going without.

Eligibility Rules

To qualify for ACCS Grandparent, you need to meet all three conditions:

1. You receive an eligible income support payment — Age Pension, Disability Support Pension, Carer Payment, JobSeeker, Parenting Payment, or another qualifying payment
2. You have primary care of the child — at least 65% of ongoing daily care, with substantial autonomy over day-to-day decisions about the child's care, welfare, and development
3. You are the child's grandparent or great-grandparent

The 65% care threshold is higher than the 35% needed for Family Tax Benefit. You need to be the primary carer, not a shared-care arrangement where the parents still have majority time.

How It Differs From Standard CCS

Standard Child Care Subsidy requires an activity test — hours of work, study, or approved activity determine how many subsidised childcare hours you receive. ACCS Grandparent waives the activity test entirely. You get 100 hours per fortnight regardless of whether you're working, studying, or retired.

The subsidy rate is also higher: up to 100% of fees (up to 120% of the standard hourly rate cap), compared to the income-tested sliding scale under standard CCS that tops out at 90% for the lowest incomes.

How to Apply

Apply for ACCS Grandparent through your Centrelink online account. If you don't already receive Child Care Subsidy (CCS) for the child, claim CCS and apply for ACCS Grandparent at the same time. The steps:

1. Check the care evidence — Centrelink may ask you to show your grandparent relationship, care percentage, and responsibility for day-to-day decisions
2. Apply through myGov — under My Family and Child care, select Additional Child Care Subsidy (grandparent); if you don't already receive CCS, include that claim
3. Confirm your child care provider — the provider needs to record your CRN and confirm enrolment in their system
4. Wait for the decision — Centrelink will tell you what other documents it needs and notify you of the outcome

If you're already receiving CCS and take on primary care of a grandchild, apply separately for ACCS Grandparent through your Centrelink online account. Call the Grandparent Adviser Line if you need help with the application.

Common Issues

Care percentage disputes. If the biological parent is also claiming childcare subsidies for the same child, a conflicting care situation arises. Centrelink will assess the evidence and determine who has primary care.

Provider coordination. Your childcare provider needs to correctly record you as the primary contact and subsidy claimant. If the child was previously enrolled under a parent's name, the provider needs to update their records.

Withholding rate. Centrelink withholds 5% of CCS/ACCS by default, paid as a lump sum after end-of-year reconciliation. You can choose to receive the full amount fortnightly, but if your circumstances change, you may have to repay.

Tasmania-Specific Context

ACCS Grandparent is a federal payment — the same rules apply across Australia. But for Tasmanian kinship carers, it stacks with state-specific supports: STAS school fee waivers, the Spectacles Assistance Scheme, and Ticket to Play sport vouchers. None of these reduce your ACCS entitlement.

The Support for Grandparents and Kinship Carers in Tasmania guide includes the ACCS application steps alongside every other Centrelink and Tasmanian payment, with a benefit-stacking worksheet that shows how federal and state supports interact.

See more Tasmania guides →