The Temporary Financial Hardship subsidy

You need to meet certain criteria to be eligible for Additional Child Care Subsidy Temporary Financial Hardship.

You must:

  • be eligible for Child Care Subsidy
  • have experienced temporary financial hardship due to an event that happened in the last 6 months
  • have a substantially reduced ability to pay child care fees.

Temporary financial hardship events

Temporary financial hardship may occur if you or your partner have:

  • lost your job, other than if you resigned or retired
  • suffered a loss of income or a business failure due to circumstances outside of your control, such as serious illness
  • been adversely affected by a major disaster event
  • had your home destroyed or severely damaged.

You may also be experiencing temporary financial hardship from:

  • the death of a partner or child
  • loss of child support due to the death of a paying parent
  • having to leave your home and not being able to return because of an extreme circumstance such as from being affected by family and domestic violence
  • being affected by family and domestic violence, and the family member responsible leaves, or is removed from the home.

You can nominate more than 1 event if they have occurred within the last 6 months.

We don’t consider any of the following events for this subsidy:

  • expenses such as routine home repairs or maintenance
  • non-essential expenses
  • increases in child care fees.
Page last updated: 10 January 2023.
QC 42246