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What funding covers#
The Government subsidises all tamariki | children to attend an early childhood education (ECE) service or Te Kōhanga Reo. Subsidies include:
- all licensed ECEs receive an ECE funding subsidy for up to 30 hours a week (the 30 hours includes any 20 hours ECE funding being used)
- 20 hours ECE funding
- the Ministry of Social Development has a childcare subsidy to help some families with childcare costs.
20 Hours ECE funding#
If a child is aged 3, 4 or 5, they are eligible for the 20 hours ECE funding scheme. The subsidy covers up to 20 hours of early childhood education each week. It can only be used for up to 6 hours a day.
You can't be charged fees for any of the 20 hours that your child has signed up to receive 20 hours ECE for.
If your child goes to more than one early learning service or Kōhanga Reo, you can split the hours between them so long as it’s not more than 6 hours a day and 20 hours a week in total. Likewise, if your child’s early learning service closes for the school holidays, you can use the 20 hours ECE at another service for that period.
If you change the number of hours your child is at their early learning service, you will need to update your enrolment agreement with them.
If you have an educator looking after your child at home (theirs or yours), you can still apply for 20 hours ECE. To do this, the educator must be part of a licensed home-based early learning service. The Ministry pays the early learning service, not the individual educator.
How to claim the subsidy#
The funding goes to your early learning service or Te Kōhanga Reo but will reduce the fees you pay. When you fill out your enrolment form, you'll need to say which hours will be covered by 20 hours ECE. Talk to your early learning service about whether they offer 20 hours ECE, as some may not.
Extra charges#
You may have to pay a fee for any hours outside 20 hours ECE that your child attends an early childhood service or Te Kōhanga Reo. Some services set a minimum number of hours for a child to attend. For example, you might have to enrol your child for at least 7 hours a day and there will be a cost for the last hour of each day.
Charges for enrolment and joining a waiting list are not subsidised.
Donations#
Donations are voluntary. Your early learning service can't require you to pay or describe them as fees.
If you’ve paid a donation, you may be able to apply for a tax credit through Inland Revenue. This depends on the type of early learning service your child goes to. You will need a receipt from the early childhood service or Te Kōhanga Reo to apply.
Optional charges#
Optional charges are a request for a payment that parents may choose whether or not to make for a specific purpose. Optional charges should reflect the real and actual costs of providing the additional items or activity.
They could be:
- sunscreen
- clothing
- food
- resources.
You have to pay optional charges if you agreed to pay them when you enrolled. Your early learning service should tell you that you won't be penalised if you don't agree to pay. But they can take away the extra items or services that the charge covers.
Home-based educator top up payments#
Home-based educators may require payments from parents to ‘top up’ the amount of 20 Hours ECE funding pass-through from their service provider to match their hourly fees for hours outside of 20 Hours ECE.
The home-based educator top up payment:
- must be no more than the difference between the pass-through and the hourly fee for each child for the hours outside of 20 Hours ECE
- can only be charged for the hours of 20 Hours ECE.
Where a parent is the employer#
Where a parent is the employer of an educator, the home-based educator top up payment still applies as a cost to the parent but is not directly charged by the educator.
For more information, see Chapter 4-3 Fees, donations, optional charges and home-based educator top up payments in the ECE Funding Handbook.
4-3 Fees, donations, optional charges and home-based educator top up payments
Help with costs#
Childcare subsidy#
The Work and Income childcare subsidy can be used instead of 20 hours ECE. If your childcare subsidy is for more than 20 hours a week, you can receive a mix of both the childcare subsidy and 20 hours ECE.
Childcare subsidy – Work and Income
Young parent subsidy#
Young parents aged 16 to 19 can get help with childcare costs.
