Fees
At Early Learning Victoria centres, fees will operate similarly to other service providers. Thanks to various kinds of government fee assistance, most families won't pay the full advertised fee. However, there will still be an out-of-pocket cost for most families. You can estimate your out-of-pocket costs. For further discussion around out-of-pocket costs, please refer to the centre director.
Your weekly invoice will provide a breakdown of the fee, any fee assistance that reduces the fee, and any remaining ‘gap fee’ amount owing. You will be required to pay the gap fee (the fee after Child Care Subsidy (CCS) and Free Kinder assistance are applied) via direct debit.
Fee assistance
Families will pay a daily fee for long day care, and the Child Care Subsidy is available for eligible families.
For children enrolled in our integrated kindergarten program, eligible families will receive both Child Care Subsidy and Free Kinder assistance.
Child Care Subsidy
The Child Care Subsidy is accessible to most families and can cover some of your fees based on your income. To receive the subsidy, you must apply through Services Australia.
The Child Care Subsidy is available to everyone with a household income below $530,000. This covers a percentage of the fee, depending on your income. For families on incomes up to $80,000 the Child Care Subsidy covers 90% of the fee for your first child, with the percentage gradually reducing up to the cut-off point of $530,000. If you have a second child under 5, the subsidy is higher for that child.
Additional Child Care Subsidy
The Additional Child Care Subsidy is for families already receiving the Child Care Subsidy and requiring further help, provided they meet specific criteria. More information is available on Services Australia.
Free Kinder
Our centres will provide integrated kindergarten in a long day care setting. This means that children will receive an approved kindergarten program delivered by a qualified early childhood teacher.
In addition to any Child Case Subsidy entitlements, the Victorian Government’s Free Kinder fee assistance will apply automatically to children enrolled in Three- and Four-Year-Old kindergarten programs at Early Learning Victoria centres.
The kindergarten program will be included in the daily fee. Free Kinder funding reduces your fees by up to $2,050 per year, depending on how many hours your child is enrolled in the kindergarten program. This reduction will be automatically applied to your invoice as a weekly saving spread across the year. Learn more.
Free Kinder is available for up to 15 hours per week (increasing for Pre-Prep). Depending on the number of hours your child is enrolled, this is valued up to approximately $2,050 over the year. The Free Kinder assistance will reduce the amount of your invoice and reduce your out-of-pocket expenses.
In most cases, our centres will not provide sessional kindergarten. Sessional kinder only operates on set days and at set times each week.
How to enrol
Learn more about the Early Learning Victoria enrolment and application process.
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