Worker Retention Payment extension: accepting the offer is only the first step

Current providers need to accept their extension and obtain departmental approval of an updated workplace instrument. A separate safety condition begins in July 2027.

ECEC providers can now accept offers extending their Worker Retention Payment agreements to 30 June 2028. Continuing participants must also have an updated workplace instrument approved by the Department of Education by 28 February 2027.

The extension offers are available through the grants portal, with instructions being emailed through SmartyGrants. Current agreements end on 30 November 2026, and existing participants should accept a variation rather than submit a new application.

The department advises providers to accept their extension by mid-December to avoid disrupted payments. Providers should check their individual offer for instructions and any specified dates, while allowing time to complete the separate workplace-instrument approval process.

Accept the offer to keep funding flowing

Accepting the offer extends an existing participant’s agreement to 30 June 2028. Providers choosing not to accept will have their agreement end under its existing terms.

The department says providers should look for an email from [email protected], including in their junk or spam folder. Those unable to locate it can contact the Child Care Subsidy Provider Helpdesk.

Providers should confirm who within their organisation is responsible for accepting the variation. Recording this separately from the workplace-instrument process can help avoid treating one completed action as confirmation that both requirements have been met.

February deadline requires approval, not just submission

Updated instruments must require wages of at least 15 per cent above applicable award rates from 1 December 2026. They must remain in place until at least the end of the grant period.

Providers must take reasonable steps to cover all eligible workers they directly employ. Under the department’s eligibility and conditions, coverage of at least 95 per cent may be accepted where those reasonable steps have been demonstrated.

The February deadline is for departmental approval, so providers should submit early enough to allow for assessment and any necessary changes. From 1 March 2027, payments may be held while a compliant instrument is missing or awaiting assessment, with backdating potentially available if it is subsequently accepted.

Check your Quality Area 2 rating before July

From 1 July 2027, services that do not meet Quality Area 2 of the National Quality Standard may have funding reduced or suspended. The quality and safety condition applies to centre-based day care, outside school hours care and family day care services.

The department advises providers with services rated below Meeting for Quality Area 2 to address findings and request reassessment by 31 March 2027. Services that have done so can continue receiving funding while that reassessment remains pending.

Fee-growth conditions also continue, and providers should check the cap applicable to each service against their agreement and current guidelines. The department’s grant-management guidance brings the next steps together: accept the extension, obtain approval of the updated instrument and prepare for the July safety condition.