NSW Department releases annual fee update for mobile and occasional care services

Annual fees and service approval application fees for mobile and occasional care services in New South Wales will now align with the annual fees and application fees for services regulated under the National Law.

The changes, which will come into effect from 1 July 2021, follow on from decisions made by the NSW Government in 2018, when the Children (Education and Care Services) Supplementary Provisions Act 2011 was amended to align the requirements for state regulated services with services regulated under the National Law.

As part of the transition process, changes have been made to the way in which annual fees are invoiced for state regulated services (mobile and occasional care services).

Annual fees and service approval application fees will now align with the annual fees and application fees for services regulated under the National Law. Fees for other transactions (such as waiver applications and applications for reassessment) will also now apply to state regulated services, as they do to services regulated under the National Law – these fees are outlined here. 

As a result of the changes, there will be a slight increase and a change in the calculation thresholds for the annual fees and service approval application fees for state regulated services. Fees are indexed and will now be due at the same time (the first day of the financial year) as fees for services regulated under the National Law.

To assist service providers to transition to the new invoicing system, annual fees that fall due within the 2020-21 financial year will be waived. This includes all fee payments that are currently outstanding.

This will mean that the next payment of fees for state regulated services will be due on 1 July 2021. Invoices for annual service fees will be sent to approved providers approximately four weeks prior to this date.