What’s changing with prescribed discounts and why it matters

From 7 July 2025, early childhood education and care (ECEC) providers must start reporting certain discounts and third-party payments in their session reports.
This change aims to improve transparency around how early education is funded, especially when families aren’t paying the full gap fee.

What are the prescribed discounts?

These discounts or payments do not affect a family’s child care subsidy (CCS) entitlement. They include things like:

• State-funded preschool subsidies (for example, Start Strong)
• Support for children in vulnerable circumstances
• Provider discounts for educators and cooks
• Gap fee waivers during emergencies

These prescribed discounts must be reported from 7 July 2025 onwards.

There is also the option for providers to report non-prescribed discounts such as loyalty discounts or enrolment incentives, however this element is voluntary. These types of discounts do reduce the hourly fee for families, and therefore also lower the CCS entitlement.

What do providers need to do?

From 7 July 2025, session reports will include new fields where providers will need to confirm:

• If a prescribed discount has been applied
• What type of discount was it
• How much was it worth

Providers can report more than one discount if needed. Non-prescribed discounts can also be included. That part is optional.

The ‘why’ behind the changes

These changes are about making sure CCS is being used the way it was designed, with families contributing to fees unless there is a good reason not to. By reporting discounts properly, providers help the government keep things fair and track how different kinds of fee support are being used across the sector.

What support is available?

The Department of Education is working with software providers to make sure the reporting system is ready ahead of the changes. Updates will also be made to the Provider Entry Point, and practical guidance will be shared over the coming months, including FAQS, task cards, and compliance training.

The bottom line

No action is needed from providers in the immediate term, however providers may wish to check in with their software provider and subscribe to updates through the Department of Education’s Weekly Newsletter, or join their Facebook Group to stay informed.

Access the full factsheet from the Department of Education here.