Common Australian Childcare Acronyms and Jargon

A plain-English guide to the funding, enrolment, quality and inclusion terms you will come across when running an early childhood education and care service. Use it as a quick reference when you hit an acronym in Xap, in a Services Australia notice, or in a conversation with a family.
This is a general guide only. Government programs and rates change, so always confirm the detail against the official sources listed at the end before you rely on it.

Subsidies and funding

• CCS, Child Care Subsidy. The main government payment that helps families with the cost of approved care. It is paid directly to your service and passed on to the family as a fee reduction. The family pays the difference, known as the gap fee.
• ACCS, Additional Child Care Subsidy. A higher level of support for families in specific circumstances. ACCS replaces the family's standard CCS rate rather than adding to it. There are four types: Child Wellbeing, Grandparent, Temporary Financial Hardship, and Transition to Work.
• ACCS (Child Wellbeing). Support for children at risk of serious abuse or neglect. The service usually starts the process on the family's behalf: you can issue an initial certificate (up to six weeks) and then apply to Services Australia for a longer determination. It provides a higher rate than standard CCS and often covers the full fee.
• ACCS (Grandparent). Support for grandparents on income support who are the primary carer of their grandchild.
• ACCS (Temporary Financial Hardship). Short-term support for families experiencing a significant, temporary financial crisis.
• ACCS (Transition to Work). Support for families moving off income support and into work.
• 3 Day Guarantee. From 5 January 2026, all CCS-eligible families receive at least 72 hours of subsidised care per fortnight, the equivalent of three days a week, regardless of activity. It replaced the Activity Test. Families with higher recognised activity can still access up to 100 hours per fortnight, and First Nations children are entitled to 100 hours per fortnight.
• Activity Test (legacy term). The pre-2026 rule that set a family's subsidised hours based on how much they worked, studied or volunteered. It was replaced by the 3 Day Guarantee on 5 January 2026. You may still see it referenced in older documents.
• Gap fee. The difference between your service's fee and the subsidy. It is the out-of-pocket amount the family pays, and it generally must be paid (it cannot be waived except in limited circumstances).
• Hourly rate cap. The maximum hourly fee the government will subsidise, set by care type. The subsidy applies to the lower of your actual fee or the cap.
• Withholding. A portion of CCS (5 per cent by default) that Services Australia holds back during the year to reduce the chance of a family owing money at reconciliation.
• Reconciliation (balancing). The end-of-financial-year check where Services Australia compares a family's income estimate against their actual income to confirm they received the right amount.
• CRN, Customer Reference Number. The Centrelink reference number for a family member or child, needed to link and confirm CCS.

Enrolment and arrangements

• CWA, Complying Written Arrangement. The written arrangement between your service and a family to provide care in return for fees. A child is considered enrolled for CCS once you and the family enter into a CWA, so it is the standard enrolment type for most children. You may see it loosely called a Complying or Certified Written Agreement, but the official term is Complying Written Arrangement.
• RA, Relevant Arrangement. An arrangement between your service and a family for the care of a child that does not meet the full requirements for a CWA. No CCS is payable under an RA, so it is only used where the family is not eligible for CCS or does not wish to claim it. It needs less information than a CWA (no parent or child CRN, and no parent confirmation), and it cannot be converted into a CWA later. If the family decides to claim CCS, you create a new CWA enrolment.
• OA, Arrangement with an Organisation. Used when a third party other than the parent or guardian is liable for the fees, for example the parent's employer or a government agency. No CCS is payable under an OA. A child can have an OA and a CWA at the same time, with the relevant sessions reported under each, where an organisation pays for some sessions and the family pays for others. It is shown as OA in enrolment systems.
• PEA, Provider Eligible Arrangement. A special enrolment type used in limited cases where no CCS-eligible parent or carer can be identified for a child at risk, for example some foster arrangements. It replaced the older Provider Eligible Enrolment from 1 July 2021.
• Enrolment notice. The notice your service submits to the Child Care Subsidy System to create or confirm a child's enrolment. You may see internal references such as a 200A notice.
• Session report. The record you submit for each child's session of care. Session reports drive how much subsidy is calculated and paid.

Government systems

• CCSS, Child Care Subsidy System. The government IT system providers use to manage enrolments, submit session reports and receive subsidy payments.
• CCMS, Child Care Management System (legacy term). The system the CCSS replaced in 2018. You may still see it referenced in older material.
• PRODA, Provider Digital Access. The Australian Government's online identity verification system, used to securely access the CCSS and related services.

Xap Supported Care types

• CBC, Centre Based Care. Centre-based care, commonly known as long day care. CBDC is the official CCS care-type label.
• LDC, Long Day Care. The everyday term for centre-based day care (CBC).
• OSHC, Outside School Hours Care. Care for school-age children, covering before school care, after school care and vacation care.

Non-Xap Supported Care types

Xap does not support In Home Care, or Family Day Care.

• IHC, In Home Care. Subsidised care in the family's own home for families who cannot access other approved care types. It is subsidised per family, not per child.
• FDC, Family Day Care. Approved care provided in an educator's own home.

Quality and compliance

• NQF, National Quality Framework. The overarching system that sets the law, regulations, standard and rating system for early childhood education and care across Australia.
• NQS, National Quality Standard. The benchmark services are assessed against, made up of seven quality areas.
• ACECQA, Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority. The national body that oversees the NQF and works with state and territory regulators.
• Regulatory Authority. The state or territory body that assesses, rates and regulates services under the NQF.
• EYLF, Early Years Learning Framework. The approved learning framework for children from birth to five (Belonging, Being and Becoming).
• MTOP, My Time, Our Place. The approved learning framework for school-age care.
• QIP, Quality Improvement Plan. The document a service maintains to self-assess against the NQS and plan improvements.
• Child Care Safety Net. The government package that supports access for vulnerable and disadvantaged children. It includes ACCS and the Inclusion Support Program.

Inclusion

• ISP, Inclusion Support Program. The national program that helps services include children with additional needs alongside their peers. It is part of the Child Care Safety Net.
• ISS, Inclusion Support Subsidy. A subsidy, funded through the IDF, that contributes toward the cost of an additional educator so a centre-based service can include a child with ongoing high support needs.
• IDF, Inclusion Development Fund. The funding stream for inclusion barriers that cannot be resolved through an Inclusion Agency or the Specialist Equipment Library.
• IDFM, Inclusion Development Fund Manager. The national body that assesses IDF applications. Deloitte took on this role from 1 October 2025.
• IA, Inclusion Agency. State and territory bodies that provide free inclusion advice and support through Inclusion Professionals.
• SIP, Strategic Inclusion Plan. The plan a service develops with an Inclusion Professional to build inclusive practice. It is usually a prerequisite for IDF funding.
• SEL, Specialist Equipment Library. A library, accessed through your Inclusion Agency, that lets services borrow equipment to support a child's inclusion.

Authoritative sources

This guide is a general reference only and does not replace official advice or your service's obligations. For current rules, rates and eligibility, refer to:

• Department of Education (CCS, ACCS, 3 Day Guarantee, Inclusion Support Program): education.gov.au
• Services Australia (family claims, CRNs, reconciliation): servicesaustralia.gov.au
• ACECQA (NQF, NQS, learning frameworks): acecqa.gov.au

Updated on: 30/06/2026